Joe Makes a Payment...

Convicted murder Joseph Kerekes recently made a payment of $26.60 towards his court-mandated restitution. Now that he's been transfered to SCI Huntingdon to spend the rest of his life, what kind of 'job' will he have to pay off the rest?

Chances are... Joe will be working in one of these three 'professions' for a long time [source]:

Garment Plant - Produces shirts, trousers, coveralls, uniform jackets, U.S. Flags, boxer shorts, sheets and pillowcases, and scrub suits.

Print & Sticker Plant - Produces business and medical forms, brochures, booklets, envelopes, business cards, identification stickers, calendars, PennDot registration stickers, and labels.

Soap & Detergent Plant - Produces bar soap, anti-bacterial soap, liquid and powdered cleaners and detergents, janitorial products, disinfectant cleaners, dilution control systems, and laundry products.

Based upon the inmate hourly wage of $0.19 - $0.42 per hour (though they can get production bonuses of up to $0.70 per hour in addition to the hourly wage)... it looks like it's gonna be a while before Joe pays his remaining debt of $3645.21 in full.

Remember This?

Harlow and Joe bought their dream house on 1028 Stratem Court back in 2005 for $542,375.00, but according to recent land records... it would appear that it was taken away from them on/or around 9/5/2008... meanwhile, additional activity occured on 03/06/09. Here's a list of some of those involved:

MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS INC.
CADLEROCK JOINT VENTURE LP
WPL VENTURES LLC
RICHARD T. CREGGER
BRIAN C. LARGE
WILLIAM T. HODSDEN
WILLIAM D. SESSOMS JR.

Ironically, William D. Sessoms also happens to be the Mayor of Virginia Beach.

You're welcomed to do your own research here. (Select "Legal", and use the GPIN listed below).

GPIN:2416 59 2600 0000

The Old Blog: Harlow & Joe... On Trial

Before I get a ton of emails asking me what happened to the original blog, I figured it would be best for me to answer the question openly:

With the information on the old blog being an enormous resource of information for anyone wanting to write a book or documentary about this case, I've chosen to remove it from public view... I say let those folks do the homework on their own dime and time.

While some may find this news to be disappointing, I certainly hope most folks will understand... at some point down the road, the blog will return.

PC

Harlow Cuadra's Sentence... Spelled Out

I meant to post this a few weeks ago on the 'old' blog, but never got around to it. For anyone still wondering, here's a breakdown of the sentence(s) Harlow received for being found guilty of first-degree murder in the brutal slaying of Bryan Kocis:

1. Criminal Homicide: Guilty - Homicide 1; Life in Prison without Parole - Confinement Consecutive from Seq. 2

2. Criminal Conspiracy Engaging - Criminal Homicide: Guilty - Homicide 1; Life in Prison without Parole - Confinement Consecutive to Seq. 1 from Seq. 3

3. Arson-Danger Of Death Or Bodily Inj: Guilty - Felony 1; Min of 30 Months to Max of 60 Months - Confinement Consecutive to Seq. 2 from Seq. 4

4. Arson-Inhabited Building Or Struct: Guilty - Felony 1; Min of 6 Months to Max of 12 Months - Confinement Consecutive to Seq. 3 from Seq. 5

5. Robbery-Inflict Serious Bodily Injury: Guilty - Felony 1; Min of 60 Months to Max of 120 Months - Confinement Consecutive to Seq. 4 from Seq. 8

6. Theft By Unlaw Taking-Movable Prop: Guilty - Felony 3; Merged

7. Tamper With/Fabricate Phys'l Evidence: Guilty - Misdemeanor 2; Probation, Min of 12 Months to Max of 12 Months - Confinement Consecutive to Seq. 12

8. Abuse Of Corpse: Guilty - Misdemeanor 2; Min of 1 Month to Max of 2 Months - Confinement Consecutive to Seq. 5 from Seq. 12

9. Criminal Conspiracy Engaging - Robbery-Inflict Serious Bodily Injury: Guilty - Felony 1

10. Criminal Conspiracy Engaging - Tamper With/Fabricate Phys'l Evidence: Guilty - Felony 1

11. Criminal Conspiracy Engaging - Arson-Danger Of Death Or Bodily Inj: Guilty - Felony 1

12. Criminal Use Of Communication Facility: Guilty - Felony 3; Min of 6 Months to Max of 12 Months - Confinement Consecutive to Seq. 8 from Seq. 7

Jurors Express Gratitude & Restored Faith in Luzerne County’s Judicial System.

The following is a portion of an opinion written in today's Times Leader by reporter Edward Lewis:

Signs of restored confidence

It surprised me to hear Olszewski even mention the embarrassment considering the public’s outrage.

But that’s Olszewski -- not afraid to take risks.

Olszewski called an audible and it worked.

After Cuadra’s three-week trial ended, two jurors who listened to testimony wrote letters to Muroski expressing their gratitude and restored faith in our county’s judicial system.

“As a taxpayer of Luzerne County, I was ashamed and disappointed with the scandal that fell upon the county courthouse,” wrote Juror No. 1 Ellen Matulis. “On Feb. 17, 2009, I reported for jury duty with fear and dread in my heart. … Judge Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. started the trial …with great authority and intelligence of the law. He was fair and impartial yet showed respect and compassion for all parties involved in the case including the jurors.”

Alternate Juror No. 1 Shannon M. Gurski wrote “… I was very unsure of what to expect when I was selected to be a juror in this case, particularly given all that has happened over the course of the last several months. I am very pleased to say that Judge Olszewski Jr. has restored my faith in the Luzerne County judicial system. His integrity and obvious devotion to the law were inspiring to witness over the three weeks that I was in his courtroom.”

It appears faith has already begun to be restored – just one audible at a time.

Harlow's Appeal... Update

As expected, the following orders were filed today in reference to Harlow Cuadra's appeal:

1. 04/09/2009 Order of Court filed. Concise Statements to be filed in 21 days-copy sent to DA & Atty Paul Walker

2. 04/09/2009 1925 B Order Served

Update @ 3:51 PM: I'm told that the 1925(b) Order is the technical name for Concise Statement(s) complained on appeals.

Update @ 4:37 PM: "...that Defendant shall file of record a Concise Statement of Errors Complained of on Appeal pursuant to Pa. R.A.P. 1925(b) and serve a copy of same upon the District Attorney and this court pursuant to Pa. R.A.P 1925(b)(1). The Statement shall concisely identify each ruling or error Appellant intends to challenge with sufficient detail to identify all pertinant issues for the judge."

Update @ 4/12/2009: I meant to post this on Friday, but I've been a little busy... anyhow, a source familiar with the case summed things up pretty well: ...'the defense files notice that they are appealing and then the trial judge has to issue the order for the filing of the when the Concise Statements are to be filed. Because until the Superior Court actually has the appeal, it is still PPO's case and jurisdiction.

... in other words... PPO gets all the info, as does the DA's office that Harlow is specifically aggrevied with, and then they include their responses (i'm almost certain) in the package that eventually gets sent in it's entirety to the Superior Court. So that they then have in their possession all the tools they need to rule on the complaints.'

Should be an interesting read once it's filed...

Joseph Kerekes Goes to His New Home...

Convicted murderer Joseph Kerekes will now be spending the rest of his natural life at SCI Huntingdon.

SCI Huntingdon
1100 Pike Street
Huntingdon, PA 16654-1112
(814) 643-2400

SCI Huntingdon (Huntingdon County), opened in 1889, was modeled after the Elmira Reformatory in New York. Originally the Huntingdon Reformatory for Young Offenders, it was later used for "defective delinquents" until 1960. It was a maximum-security prison for men and housed capital case inmates until 1995. Today, SCI Huntingdon is a close-security institution.

So what is "close-security"?

Well according to Wikipedia: Under close security, prisoners usually have one or two person cells operated from a remote control station. Each cell has its own toilet and sink. Inmates may leave their cells for work assignments or correctional programs and otherwise may be allowed in a common area in the cellblock or an exercise yard. The fences are generally double fences with watchtowers, housing armed guards, plus often a third, lethal-current electric fence in the middle.

Harlow Cuadra Appeals

The appeal was filed to the Superior Court of Pennsylvania by Attorney Paul J. Walker, and is for "the Conviction and Sentence on March 16, 2009".

Update @ 4:39 PM: Sources tell me that the folks who handle the appeals to Superior Court said they have never seen a notice filed quite like the one that was filed yesterday. There is usually more substance than that [it was 1 page - the picture above]. Apparently the judge will be filing an order directing counsel to file a concise statement of matters of appeal within 20 days, probably by tomorrow, and that is when all of the issues will be raised.

Welcome to the New Harlow Cuadra Trial Blog...

While this site may appear to be the same... look for a lot more details & updates... Harlow's complete appeal will be shown shortly... not to mention a lot of other stuff relating to the case.

Please give me a day [or two] to get things in the format that I'd like.

BTW... since this is an invitation only blog... comment moderation will not be used [for now], but please remember that the policy on comments is as follows: criticize the facts and opinions all you like, but please stay on topic; comments that contain personal attacks will be deleted without comment, and the offender may be met with a permanent ban from this blog.

Update 04/08/09 @ 5:26 PM: There appears to have been an a problem with people not being able to leave comments... I believe I've fixed this issue... if you're still having trouble though, please send me an email. My apologies for the inconvenience... and a special thanks to willg for pointing it out.

Update 05/27/09 @ 4:35 PM: I've decided to allow this blog to be visible to all... so comment moderation has been reinstated.