DONEGAL, Pa. — Monday Jan. 12 5:25 p.m. UPDATE -- The jury has found Michael Martin guilty of first-degree murder.
https://twitter.com/WPXIJoeHolden/status/554766473290579969
It took jurors just two hours to convict the Westmoreland County man of stabbing his father-in-law, Earl Weygandt, to death.
“Joy that justice was served. But our hearts are missing my brother right now,” said Kimberly Weygandt.
Earl Weygandt was stabbed nine times before his body was found in a car along Route 31 in Donegal back in 2013.
“It’s a big weight off of us,” said Weygandt’s daughter, Shelly Pelzer. “My dad can finally rest in peace.
Martin admitted to killing Weygandt, but claimed it wasn’t murder.
“You claimed from the beginning that it was self-defense. Is that still the case?” Holden asked Martin.
“Yes,” Martin replied.
Martin will be sentenced within the next 30 days.
The first-degree murder trial of a Washington Township man charged with the stabbing death of his father-in-law in Donegal Township will go to the jury on Monday.
The prosecution contends 41-year-old Michael Martin repeatedly stabbed 67-year-old Earl Weygandt during an altercation in August 2013.
Martin previously claimed Weygandt threatened him with a gun, which prompted him to stab his wife's father in self-defense.
Rick Espey, a security guard at the private campground in Donegal where Weygandt was staying, testified Wednesday that Weygandt expected trouble the night Martin came to visit.
"He said when he left, ‘I don't look for this to be good. I'm expecting trouble.’ I said, ‘Why you going?’ He said he had to,” Espey said.
Weygandt's body was found in his vehicle near Kalp Lane, not far from the Donegal interchange of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. He had been stabbed nine times, police said.
Espey told the court that Weygandt had recently cut off financial support to his stepdaughter and Martin.
A jury of nine women and three men was selected to hear evidence in the trial.
Channel 11's Joe Holden reported that the step-by-step account by prosecutors was graphic.
“It’s hard to sit in the courtroom with the guy who killed him,” said Weygandt’s daughter, Shelly Pelzer. “It’s hard to hear how my dad died and how horrible it was.”
Holden reported at one point Tuesday that Martin’s defense attorney Brian Aston told the jury that his client killed Weygandt.
"The government is going to spend a lot of time showing you what I just told you in 10 seconds,” Aston said. "You must decide what was in Michael Martin's mind on that dark night.”
Prosecutors also called Jeffery Ritenour, a longtime friend of Martin, to the stand Wednesday.
Ritenour testified that Martin initially asked him to lie to police about where he was the night Weygandt was found dead.
“He basically came to my house and told me if the police called, to cover for him. I told him I would,” said Ritenour.
However, Ritenour said he had a change of heart and eventually told police the truth after learning the severity of the crime.
“I've known him for 20 years; it was hard on me,” said Ritenour. “In the same sense, justice is justice, so I just had to do the right thing.”
On Friday, the prosecution rested. The defense said they had no defense, and the jury was sent home. They're expected to be charged Monday morning.
First-degree murder carries a mandatory life prison sentence.
PREVIOUS STORIES:
- Man who stabbed father-in-law claims he did so in self-defense
- Police say man lured father-in-law to lot, stabbed him 9 time
WPXI
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/XCUXZC2XYZHCRGNNGKFEX6U3LQ.png)
