A Wolf in Suburbia: The Pesce Family Murders Part 7

Episode 88 of the podcast covers days 12, 13, 14, the verdict and sentencing portions of the Pesce Family Murder Trial and chapters 20, 21, 22, & 23 of the book, A Wolf in Suburbia - The Pesce Family Murders.

The trial hears from some key witnesses for the prosecution and the defense and is ultimately deliberated on for less than four hours before a verdict was reached. 

Transcript

Chapter 20 - Day Twelve

Tuesday, May 6th, 2003

After the excitement of Richard Cunningham’s collapse and the subsequent break that came as a result of the heart attack, Judge Ryan was ready to get things moving at a quicker pace. The next few days would be jam packed with witnesses. 

The morning began with a re-swearing in of William ‘Billy Wad’ Smith. Douglas Baker asked the aging biker about the conversations that he had with his nephew, John Wolfenbarger, in the days following the murders. They discussed the interactions at the Copa Lounge and Wolfenbarger searching channels for coverage of the murders. 

Then they talked about the moment Smith realized that his nephew was behind the Pesce family murders.

“I went and made a phone call.”

“To who?” Baker asked. 

“Eric Krawczyk.”

“And he’s a Dearborn Police officer?”

“Yes. I told him I think I have information regarding the murders in Livonia.”

At first the officer was unsure of what Smith was telling him. He hadn’t seen the news. Once he learned about the story he called Smith right back. 

“Billy, this is very serious. You think you know who did this?” 

“Yes.”

Smith was hesitant at the time. The Dearborn officer suggested that he head into the Livonia Police station immediately. But Smith was a biker, there was a code of silence to consider. After deciding that he couldn’t live with himself if he didn’t come forward, he left for the station. 

On cross examination it wouldn’t take long for Richard Cunningham to bring Smith’s original testimony into question. There’d been numerous times mentioned for when Wolfenbarger first came to the Smith home to ask for clothing as well as some date discrepancies on when he got in contact with the officer from Dearborn.  William Smith claimed to be confused during his various police interviews, Cunningham repeatedly called him a liar. 

Each objection from Baker was sustained by Judge Ryan but it didn’t slow Cunningham down. He was doing his best to fluster William Smith but Smith stayed calm on the stand. 

After nearly an hour of repeated questions and a mocking tone, Cunningham wrapped up his questioning. Baker used his re-direct to clean up some of the mess before William Smith finally stepped down. His cousin, and fellow Devils Diciples member, Steven Phillips was called next.  

Before the forty-year-old cousin of Billy Smith and second-cousin of John Wolfenbarger began his testimony, Judge Ryan and Prosecutor Baker needed to clear something up in regards to Steven Phillips. Due to the search warrant served at the Phillips residence that turned up several weapons. Steven Phillips was being charged in the same court, and potentially in front of the same judge.

It was being requested that Phillips be granted a ‘use immunity.’ If granted, the testimony used in the Wolfenbarger trial could not be used against him in his own, separate trial. Judge Ryan went on to explain to the courtroom that if he wasn’t granted the ‘use immunity’, Phillips could simply plead the fifth. Immunity was granted and Baker began his questioning. 

After running through the events that led to the gun exchange between Phillips and Wolfenbarger, and Phillips’ subsequent arrest, Baker was done. Richard Cunningham would attack Phillips honesty, just as he had with Smith.

“You told detectives during your investigative subpoena that you told John you couldn’t do anything for him.” Cunningham began. “You never told them about the .357 did you?”

“I did tell them later,” Phillips answered.

“You told them on January 21st, didn’t you?”

“Yes, I did.”

“You went to them and said I lied back on the 26th, didn’t you?”

“I was nervous.” Phillips shifted in his seat.

“I see. So if you’re nervous, it’s okay to lie under oath, is that it?”

“I wouldn’t say I lied. I said I came in and cleared myself. I didn’t fill it in is all I did.” 

Cunningham next brought up Phillips' relationship to Billy Smith in regards to the Devils Diciples. One of Phillips’ roles within the club was to hold guns for members of the club.

The back and forth went on for nearly a half hour and quickly became heated. As Cunningham got close to wrapping up his questioning of the witness he was scolded by Judge Ryan. 

“Ladies and Gentleman, you’re to disregard what counsel is saying. Counsel is only permitted to ask questions, not argue their case until closing arguments.” 

As day twelve of the trial neared its end, the prosecution ran through five more witnesses. First up was Persisleia McDonald, an assistant manager at the Dearborn, MI Sears. She testified to a white male and a black male coming into the store together and purchasing a pair of Skechers and work boots. She also testified to throwing away their old shoes. 

Next up was Lisa Stamper, the Hallmark employee that sold Wolfenbarger the Russ teddy bear. It was the only bear she sold that day and she was able to point to the man that bought it, John Wolfenbarger. 

Sergeant Patrick Moug of the Livonia Police Department approached the stand next. Prosecutor Oronde Patterson directed his attention to the second search warrant carried out at Dennis Lincoln’s home in Mount Morris. The two discussed a series of evidentiary photos taken in Lincoln’s basement. Photos of new boots, new socks, new jeans and stash of money inside Lincoln’s coat. 

Ruthel Spight, owner of Heart and Soul Artworks in Flint, Michigan was the next witness called to the stand. She’d become familiar with Dennis Lincoln after he’d brought in a couple of pieces of jewelry to sell via consignment in her shop. 

The final witness of the day was Michigan State Police Detective Sergeant Robert Rayer from the Firearms Identification Unit based in Northville, MI. He was an expert in his field and had tested a number of weapons relating to the case that were brought forth leading up to the trial. 

Rayer was able to confidently determine that the bullets found to have killed the Pesce family came from the Davis Industries P .380 semiautomatic pistol. Before Cunningham could get too deep into his cross-examination, Judge Ryan chose to wrap for the day. Richard Cunningham would have to pick up where he left off the following day. 

Chapter 21 - Day Thirteen

Wednesday, May 7th, 2003

The thirteenth day of the trial would be a whirlwind of witnesses as things neared the end. Of the eleven witnesses that would be called, eight were witnesses for the defense. The day would start off with a continuation of Cunningham’s cross-examination of firearms expert Robert Rayer. From there, Oronde Patterson brought up Dorothy Martus, a supervisor with the Biology DNA Unit of the Michigan State Police. 

With a Bachelor’s of Science in medical technology from Wayne State and a Master’s of Science from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, she too was considered an expert in her field. She explained the ins and outs of DNA and how it related to the case. DNA, as the defense attorneys had pointed out a dozen times during the trial, was limited in this case, especially when it came to their clients, Wolfenbarger and Lincoln.

Martus did however, find Melissa Pesce’s DNA on the inside barrel of the .380 and Sabrina Pesce’s DNA on a used kleenex on the basement floor. 

On cross-examination, Richard Cunningham asked fairly routine, scientific questions about DNA, markers, and how his client had been ruled out from any DNA that was found in the Pesce home. Before he finished he had one last question.

“What about Steven Phillips? Did you exclude Steve Phillips?”

“I did not receive any blood from Steve Phillips.”

“I see. Nothing further.”

He was hoping for a mic-drop moment, it may have been too late.

Martus was excused from the stand and Judge Ryan addressed the prosecution team. 

“Any other matters to address before we continue?”

“Yes your honor,” Douglas Baker began. “We’re moving to strike the balance of witnesses who are on the list that we have not called. We’re prepared to rest in front of the jury.” 

Judge Ryan looked over at Cunningham who responded.

“There are two people on the witness list that I want produced. I would be willing to waive the rest of them. One is Officer Krawczyk and the other one was Sergeant List.”

“Anything else?” Asked Ryan. 

Douglas Baker had more to say.

“Your Honor, the other thing is I have issues with every witness I know he’s going to call that I would like to raise.” 

“Which issues do you have with which witnesses, Counsel?” 

“Well, as to Margaret Slezak, I don’t know exactly what the defense intends to elicit from her. My information is that she is a bank person that was involved in the negotiation of a commercial loan for Mr. Pesce. And I have the same thing with Miss Trondeau who is a bookkeeper for Marco Pesce. I don’t see where that’s relevant to anything in this case or how that’s connected to any defense claim.”

“Well, the defenses theory is that Mr. Pesce was in some financial distress.”

“Well, I understand, Your Honor, but I think he can’t make it relevant because he gave a fairy tale opening statement and then cite back to his opening statement.” 

Cunningham stood to object to Baker’s use of the words fairy tale. Judge Ryan responded to Baker.

“It would only be fairy tale if he’s not able to present the testimony.” 

“It’s fairy tale that he can’t connect it to anything. How in the world can he connect any of this to anything to make it relevant?” 

“Noted.” Was all Ryan would say and with that the jury was brought back into the courtroom and the defense was able to call their first witness, Eric Krawczyk, a Dearborn Police Department officer and member of the Drug Enforcement Administration task force. 

Krawczyk had been a part of the task force when a search warrant was executed at the home of Billy Smith on November 22nd, 2002. The contents of that search warrant were sealed by the Federal Court so they couldn’t be discussed at the trial of John Wolfenbarger but Cunningham wanted to know why Krawczyk left behind his business card.

“To give him an opportunity to cooperate with authorities if he wished to.”

The next time he heard from Billy Smith was on December 23rd when Smith called the officer’s cell phone. Krawczyk proceeded to pick up Billy Smith and take him to the Livonia Police Department. 

Cunningham wanted the jury to see that Smith had only come forward with information on the Pesce murders to get special consideration on any future possible cases involving the search warrant executed on his home. 

“Did you assure him that he would be given special consideration?” Cunningham asked. 

“I assured him that I would take the information that was provided to me by him to the United States Attorney’s Office and it would be up to them to decide if there was consideration to be given.” 

During Baker’s cross examination he attempted to clear up any confusion for the jury. Billy Smith came forward because of the details of the murders. Killing children went against everything he believed in, not because he wanted to be let off on other charges unrelated to the Pesce case. Officers had found weapons in Billy Smith’s home during the initial raid on his home in November, something that went against his parole. Because the U.S. Attorney could not confirm whose guns were found in the home, they would not be pursuing an indictment against Billy Smith. This eliminated the idea that Smith had an ulterior motive to give police officers information on John Wolfenbarger. 

The next witness for the defense needed to be handled over the phone. Sarkis Karageuzian lived in California and was unable to travel to Detroit, Michigan at the time. The call went to voicemail.

“Mr. Karageuzian, this is Judge Dan Ryan. It’s 12:00 o’clock Eastern. Please call for purposes of testifying in the trial in which you’ve been subpoenaed. Thank you.”

He hung up the phone and directed Cunningham to call his next witness, Sergeant Randy List of the LPD. Cunningham asked List to discuss the day he met Diane Pesce at the St. Martins’ home. On December 26th, Diane Pesce had been asked to go through the home to see what all might have been missing. She also needed clothing to wear to the funeral. 

He then asked about the Sergeant’s trip to the Hallmark store where the stuffed bear was purchased. He asked the officer to look at his notes and read the portion about interviewing Lisa Stamper. 

“What did Miss Stamper say in regards to identifying Mr. Wolfenbarger.” 

“Um, per my notes, she did not recognize Mr. Wolfenbarger.” 

“Nothing further, your honor.”

On cross, Douglas Baker attempted to clear up any chance that Lisa Stamper’s testimony should be impeached. They discussed how different Wolfenbarger had looked on that day from the time he was arrested. The closeness of his shaved head and the length of his goatee and neck hair. 

The next witness for the defense was a woman whose aunt and uncle lived on St. Martins near the Pesce home, Dawn Guthard. 

She was quickly cut off and asked to leave the courtroom; they had reached Sarkis Karageuzian in California. Karageuzian ran a business called Goldcrest Jewellers, a diamond wholesaler in California. Marco Pesce was a client of his. 

In October of 2002, Karageuzian had made a trip to Michigan, and in exchange for three post dated checks, left jewelry with Mr. Pesce for him to sell. Upon hearing of Pesce’s murder, Karageuzian attempted to cash the checks in order to get his money back. The checks bounced due to insufficient funds. Cunningham was quick to point out as he shouted into the Judge’s phone, that the checks had been dated for November, December, and January of 2003. He was implying that Pesce had knowingly written the checks for so far out because he was having financial issues. 

Questions were asked and asked again as the jeweler struggled to hear the questions over the phone. Baker attempted to argue that the checks were returned because they were dated wrong, Cunningham finished by making sure that the jury heard Mr. Karageuzian say that they were in fact returned due to insufficient funds. 

After an hour-long break for lunch, the judge and attorneys returned to the courtroom. Before the jury was allowed back in, Douglas Baker raised his continued concerns for witnesses that the defense planned on calling. In particular, Ed Jameel, brother of Diane Pesce who’d been in the Copa Lounge parking lot on the night of the murders buying drugs. The prosecutor had granted him immunity from testifying in regards to drugs while The Jameel family was being looked at as possible suspects in the murders. 

On the night of the murders, Ed Jameel, his wife, and their 10-year-old daughter arrived at the Copa Lounge parking lot for the purposes of buying drugs from a man that they knew only as ‘Ghost.’ Him testifying would potentially violate his parole and could land him charges for child abuse and drug trafficking. 

The issue, for Baker, was that if Cunningham got information out of him that Jameel then refused to answer on cross-examination, then he shouldn’t be called up as a witness. He also needed to be offered the right to have an attorney present as both Billy Smith and Steven Phillips had. Judge Ryan called Ed Jameel into the courtroom. He took a seat at the witness stand.

“Now, Mr. Jameel, you need to decide before you’re called whether you intend to invoke the right to counsel.” 

“Okay, I would like counsel.” He answered. 

“Do you want me to appoint an attorney?”

“Yes, I don’t have an attorney.” 

With that, Mr. Jameel was led back out of the courtroom and Dawn Guthard was recalled. 

On December 21st, Dawn had stopped by her aunt and uncle’s home on St. Martin’s street. Around 5:00 PM that evening she’d noticed a white van parked in front of the Pesce house facing towards Newburgh road. What it was doing or who was in the van was unknown, it was a loose attempt to say that someone else may have murdered the family. 

Margaret Warden was the next witness called for the defense. Miss Warden was a regular at Italia Jewelry. She was called to testify after revealing to police that on December 7th, just weeks before the murder, she was shopping at Italia when two men came into the store near closing and just waited in silence by the front door. Whether or not it was John Wolfenbarger and Dennis Lincoln is unknown but Cunningham called her to testify based on her initial police report where she described two darker complexioned men with black hair in their thirties. He wanted the testimony to be heard by the jury to plant the seed that someone else may have been casing the store or potentially were owed money by Mr. Pesce. 

Douglas Baker attempted to object but failed and her testimony was allowed. On cross-examination Baker asked Miss Warden if John Wolfenbarger could have been one of those two men, she wasn’t sure, and he proved his point all but negating her testimony.

The next witness called was Nancy Tondreau. Tondreau was Mr. Pesce’s accountant, handling bits of both his personal and business life. She’d only been working for Pesce for two months when he was murdered. Cunningham asked about the amount of life insurance policies that Pesce had on himself, the answer was five. 

Then in another bizarre twist, Cunningham seemed to be attempting to impeach his own witness. According to Cunningham, Tondreau had stated to the police that at the time of his death he owed various people upwards of $300,000.00. Since that statement it had been realized that that was due to the common practice of jewelers post dating checks to their suppliers. 

It was a practice that Tondreau, as an accountant, did not like. Waiting for people to cash post dated checks or having them cashed too early wreaked havoc on her books. She was new to the job and had never worked with a jeweler. She may have misspoke when speaking to police after her boss's death. 

At this point in the trial, as it neared the end, Cunningham seemed to be flailing, casting his line into a lake with no fish. 

Senior Loan Officer for New Liberty Bank, Margaret Slezak was next. She took her seat and waited for the questions to begin. In the weeks before his death Pesce had contacted Slezak about taking out a new loan for between 50 and 75,000.00 dollars. 

Baker quickly objected to the relevancy of a man taking out a business loan for consolidation purposes. Judge Ryan overruled him, he wanted to see where Cunningham was going with this. In her statement, Slezak mentioned that he requested a $100,000.00 loan and that he needed it quickly. She countered with the $50,000.00 offer and they met in the middle at $75,000.00. Cunningham wanted to know why?

The expansion of the strip mall was the reason, Cunningham wanted people to think he was scrambling to pay people back. 

While Ed Jameel met downstairs with a court appointed attorney, Baker, Cunningham, and Ryan discussed what would happen if he or his wife, who were the next and last two witnesses, decided to plead the fifth amendment. Jameel entered the courtroom a short while later and his new attorney shared the information that he had indeed decided to exercise his right not to testify. His wife would be doing the same. 

With that, the defense rested their case. 

The last person that would be taking the stand was Marco’s brother Fabrizio. Fabrizio Pesce was now being used as a rebuttal witness for the prosecution. A rebuttal witness is someone called to testify in court to challenge or contradict testimony previously given by another witness. Essentially, they offer evidence to disprove or cast doubt on the opposing party's claims. They are crucial for presenting a more complete picture of the facts and ensuring all evidence is thoroughly examined before a verdict.

As the executor for his brother Marco’s estate, Douglas Baker wanted to clear up some things with Fabrizio. Fabrizio revealed that at the time of his death Marco had close to $200,000.00 in available cash. In addition, there was nearly $15,000.00 in his safe at Italia Jewelry and nearly half a million dollars in inventory within the store’s walls. 

Once Fabrizio was excused, Judge Ryan addressed the court.

“Now, ladies and gentleman, you have heard all of the testimony and the evidence that you will hear as it relates to this case. The next phase of the trial is what we call closing arguments.”

With that, court was adjourned. The next day would be the end of what turned into a very long trial. 

Chapter 22 - Closing Arguments and a Verdict

Thursday, May 8th, 2003

“All right. We're here, ladies and gentlemen - good morning,” Judge Ryan adjusted his seat as he spoke. “We’re here for closing arguments as it relates to this case. As I've told you before, the prosecutor has the right to go first, then defense counsel does their closing, and the prosecution reserves a portion of their time allocated for what we call rebuttal. With that, Mr. Baker, are you ready to proceed with your closing argument?”

“Yes, Your Honor.”

“You may proceed.”

“We have reached the point in the case where I have an opportunity to address you directly, and I'd like to begin by thanking you for your participation in this case. It's probably not been easy on your own personal lives to sit here and then have the kind of break in the trial that we did and come back, but we very much appreciate it and also appreciate the attention that I know you've paid to all of the testimony and all the witnesses in the case.

Now, soon this case will be yours for decision, and that's always a time of some anxiety to me, that we've lived and worked with this case since its outset and you will soon have it to decide and you will be deciding what the facts are in this case, what the truth is in the case of People versus John Wolfenbarger, as it should be.

In this argument I want to share my thoughts on the evidence and how I think the case should be decided based on the evidence. And if anything I say helps you in that process or your process of decision making, I would ask you to use it. If you think I'm out in left field on anything I say, throw it out. The point is that you will be the ultimate judges of the facts in this case and the determiners of what justice will be in this case.”

Prosecutor Douglas Baker spent the next sixty minutes plus going over the evidence, countering every wild suggestion that Cunningham and Pitts had laid out before the jury. He ran through the early witnesses that were called in the early weeks of the trial which seemed like a distant memory now. 

He discussed Doreen Beauchamp who was sitting in the audience. “We have Doreen here with us today, girlfriend of the defendant, in love with John Wolfenbarger, said from the stand before our break that she still is. And my argument to you is he has her so manipulated and so snowed under even at this point she can’t see the reality in front of her.”

There was the cellphone evidence, the casing of other jewelry stores,  Tracy Letts and her children, one of which received the teddy bear that Wolfenbarger had used to gain entry into the Pesce home.

Then of course, there was Billy ‘Wadd’ Smith.

“Billy Smith, boy, he’s rough around the edges, I agree, and, you know, we may not want to take him home to dinner, I understand that. But for all of his warts and all of his problems, he knew what to do and he started coming forward. And that ain’t going to be nothing for him because right away he’s thinking ‘I’m a snitch’. I’m in this bike club, but here’s this mass murderer.”

As he neared the end of his closing arguments, Baker put the focus back on John Wolfenbarger. 

“John Wolfenbarger, in his self-centeredness, ladies and gentleman, he’s a cold-blooded killer, and you’ve got all kinds of evidence demonstrating that. And his self-centeredness makes him a coward. He’s basically a coward because he’ll do anything to avoid this day, and that is the day where he is going to finally be held accountable and responsible for what he’s doing.”

The courtroom was silent.

“That’s why these people died. Think of that. If you’re a loved one of that family and you want to ask yourself, why did they have to die? They died so this coward would not have to answer for what he’s done. Find him guilty on all of these charges before him. Thank you very much, ladies and gentleman.”

Judge Ryan spoke up, “alright you started at 9:48, it’s 11:05. You have ample time for your rebuttal.”

Next it was Richard Cunningham’s turn.

“Reasonable doubt, fair, honest doubt growing out of the evidence or the lack of evidence, oh, not some fanciful doubt or something based on mere possibility or speculation of innocence but a doubt based on reason and common sense, a reasonable doubt growing out of the evidence or out of the lack of evidence.”

He continued.

“There is no evidence that puts John Wolfenbarger inside that home. There is no physical evidence to tie him to that home. His fingerprints, they aren’t there, his blood’s not there, his DNA’s not there. There is nothing of his inside that home.”

He went on to discuss how there was a fingerprint lifted from one of the ransacked drawers inside the Pesce home. It wasn’t from Wolfenbarger and it didn’t belong to a member of the Pesce family. So… whose was it? There was DNA on the .380 and again, it wasn’t Wolfenbarger and it wasn’t a Pesce. 

Jurors listened intently as he battled every point Mr. Baker had made during his closing arguments. An ever changing timeline, witnesses who couldn’t keep their stories straight from investigation to another, police officers who recorded dates and times incorrectly. 

“Are the police making things up, are they being bad? Of course not. What leads these police officers to do it? They want bad guys. They hate bad guys. That’s what we admire about them. That’s why we ask them to make the sacrifices they do. Are they coming in here intentionally lying on John? No. Have they been misled by Billy Smith? Yep. And who else, we don’t know.”

Richard Cunningham had promised the jurors that he’d keep it to about an hour, and he was a man of his word. As 12:15 PM approached, Cunningham went to wrap it up. 

“This is a horrible crime here, they just don’t get any worse. I’ve been doing this for a long time and I’ve never seen anything as bad as this. But that’s not an excuse to forget proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Can I prove to you that somebody else did it? No, I can’t. Can I prove to you that organized crime was involved here? No, I can’t. Can I prove to you that the reason that Mr. Pesce came in and said he wanted a hundred thousand dollars by Friday had anything to do with his death? I can’t. But I don’t have to. The burden is not on me. The burden is on the prosecutor. Baker gave you his theory but has he proved it beyond a reasonable doubt? No.”

After lunch, Prosecutor Baker wasted little time in his rebuttal. He corrected all of Cunningham’s theories and pointed back to the massive amounts of evidence and testimony they had heard over the course of the trial. In the end he said, “We hope you will agree with the prosecution, and we hope that you will come back with a verdict of guilty on all the charges. Thank you.”

Judge Ryan then carefully and slowly went through all of his instructions for the twelve people sitting in the jurors box, reminding them of their duties and obligations as jurors.  They would be deciding if John Wolfenbarger was guilty on 17 various counts. 

At 2:50 PM the jurors were excused to begin their deliberation. They’d go until 3:45 and then return the following day at 8:30 AM.

At 11:27 AM the following day, Friday, May 9th, 2003, the jury foreman delivered a note to an officer of the court. They had their verdict at just over three hours of deliberation. Dennis Lincoln’s trial had already ended but the results were kept sealed until now. In the courtroom were Dennis Lincoln, John Wolfenbarger, Prosecutors Baker and Patterson, as well as Richard Cunningham for Wolfenbarger and Byron Pitts, son of Cornelius, for Lincoln. 

Ten minutes after noon, Judge Ryan ran through the charges with the jury foreman.

Counts one through five, homicide, first degree premeditated, one for each family member slain. “How does the jury find the defendant?” 

“Guilty on all counts.”

Counts six through ten, felony murder, one for each family member slain. 

“How does the jury find the defendant?” 

“Guilty on all counts.”

Counts eleven through fifteen, Armed robbery, one count for each family member slain.

“How does the jury find the defendant?” 

“Guilty on all counts.”

Count sixteen, Felony Firearm.

“How does the jury find the defendant?” 

“Guilty.”

Count seventeen, Felon in Possession of a Firearm.

“How does the jury find the defendant?” 

“Guilty.”

Once Judge Ryan polled the jurors, he turned his attention to Dennis Lincoln, opening the sealed envelope he had before him. One by one he read all of the same counts for Lincoln; his jury, back in April, had come to the same conclusions, guilty on all counts.

The jurors were excused and Judge Ryan set the sentencing for both defendants for Tuesday, May 27th.

Chapter 23 - I’ll Stand Mute

Tuesday, May 27th, 2003

On May 27th, 2003, just over five months after the mass murder of the Pesce family, defendant John Wolfenbarger arrived at his sentencing. 3rd Judicial Court Judge Daniel P. Ryan entered the courtroom and took his seat. 

“John Wolfenbarger, calling Case 03-689. Appearances for prosecution as well as for defense?”

“Douglas Baker on behalf of the People.”

“Good morning, Your Honor. May it please the court, Richard Cunningham on behalf of Mr. Wolfenbarger.”

“Good Morning, Your Honor. Oronde Patterson representing the people.”

At this time, Wolfenbarger was supposed to be entering the courtroom to face his sentencing. He refused. Judge Ryan was growing impatient.

“Record should reflect that the defendant, John Wolfenbarger, is being brought out from the back.” 

Judge Ryan and the attorneys handled a matter previously discussed during a side-bar while they waited. There was some question as to the length of the sentence when it came to the Felon in Possession charge and whether it would be 24 or 76 months. Potentially stacked on top of a life sentence, it was more of a technicality than anything.

“We’ll wait until the defendant is brought out. Mr. Wolfenbarger is refusing to come out.”

“May I talk with him?” Replied Cunningham.

“Yeah, counsel may go back into the… if not, then we’ll handcuff him and bring him out.”

The sentencing came to a halt while Richard Cunningham went out and spoke with Wolfenbarger. The Pesce family and friends grew more infuriated as they waited to see the man found guilty for murdering Marco, Maria, Carlo, Sabrina and Melissa. 

A cousin of Marco recalls how she felt sitting in the courtroom during that moment.

“He (Wolfenbarger) was so defiant and did not want to face what he had done. The bailiffs had to practically drag him out to face the judge. It was pathetic and gave everyone a good idea of who he really was as a man.”

He finally entered the courtroom.

“Record should reflect, 03-689, defendant John Wolfenbarger is present. Step to the podium please.” Judge Ryan continued. “I know there are two representatives, one from the family of the victims along with a personal friend. Comments need to be directed to the court. First representative needs to come over by the side-bar, stand right by the door and you can address your comments. Please first state your name.”

“My name is Michael Allen.”

Allen, the brother in law of Marco Pesce and uncle to the three children nervously began to read his statement.

“The frailty of human life and the depravity of man have never been more apparent. Because of these two beings that are less than human, our lives on this planet will never be the same. This tragedy, our pain and grief are immeasurable. The brutality of these crimes, especially to those precious children, defies the imagination. Hollywood itself could not have handed this family a worse script, and a benchmark for cowards has reached an all time low.”

Allen continued, addressing the people responsible for granting an early release to both former inmates.

“Clearly, Your Honor, our pain stems not only from our loss of loved ones but from the kick in the teeth we have received from the criminal justice system of the State of Michigan as well. These career criminals are poster boys for why early release for violent criminals does not work, and the parole board that released these two prematurely has blood on their hands as well and should be held accountable. 

Because of their early release, our relatives have been murdered. The revolving door policies of this current system are rotten to the core and must be changed to insure that we at least have a small chance of protecting Michigan’s most vulnerable citizens, that being the elderly and innocent minor children.”

Wolfenbarger sat still, staring at the ground.

“How much longer shall we suffer from the hand of cruel and unusual leniency? Why is it that we can leave Frank Murphy Hall of Justice and walk in any direction and find a new sports stadium or casino but yet no funds are available for larger prisons?”

The home of the Detroit Tigers, Comerica Park, opened in 2000 while Ford Field, home of the Detroit Lions opened in early 2002. The three Detroit casinos, Greektown, MGM and Motor City opened in 1999 and 2000. All of which were part of the rebuilding of Detroit that took place during Democratic Mayor Dennis Archer’s two terms in office.

Marco Pesce’s brother in law wasn’t done addressing the court, not by a long shot. 

“However, the question of our darkest hour now becomes, what do we do with Wayne County’s answer to Hollywood’s Dumb and Dumber?” Allen gestured to Lincoln and Wolfenbarger.

“May I present to you Evil and Wicked, two of the worst snakes to ever slither out of the Wayne County Jail and into this courtroom. In fact, please tell us, Your Honor, you have the punishment that will be fitting for these crimes. You see, Your Honor, Wolfenkiller and Lincoln, his navigator, went to great lengths to plan, stalk and ultimately execute five precious people for no reason but for their own false sense of entitlement based on stupidity, laziness and evil nature.”

Allen now switched his focus to Marco.

“Marco, a great compassionate human being, was stalked and chosen because of his hard work and relentless desire to succeed as a businessman and master jeweler. Because of his sheer determination, he was living the American dream that unfortunately and abruptly ended into the nightmare of our lives. Italia Jewelry and his Mercedes were mere symbols of his dreams and vision, not with the intent to entice the wicked but as a sign of encouragement to all others that come from humble beginnings that they too can have a continued wonderful life in America if they only dared to dream. 

His legacy as the eternal optimist, a devoted husband and father, a faithful friend, but most of all he leaves us as a hero who died trying to save the lives of those he loved the most, his mother and children. He spent the last day of his life taking the children to visit the only woman he ever loved, his wife, their mother, Diane.”

From there, Allen took a deep breath and returned to talking about Wolfenbarger and Lincoln, this time taking a shot at the attorneys. Family members were offended by Pitts, in particular, for attempting to bring race into the discussion when it came to his client at various times during the trial.

“Shame on these murderers and their so-called attorneys for this blatant misrepresentation of the facts in a feeble attempt to free their clients. Make no mistake, our faith does not allow us personally to take vengeance upon these criminals because vengeance only belongs to the Lord and to the government he gives authorization to remove criminals to protect our society. But yet I’ve choked them to death a thousand times in my mind.”

“These murderers will soon experience the wrath of Almighty God and they will find new pain and suffering all the days of their lives. These murderers have no fear of you or us or even our Lord Jesus Christ. Trust me, that’s all about to change. These two have solidified their place in hell along with Dahmer, Lacy and Bundy.”

The courtroom sat silent as Michael Allen finished his statement.

“Your Honor, do what needs to be done and send these rats back to their cage from whence they came. But before you do, please tell us you have some extra punishment you can administer because life in prison is too kind for this despicable duo capable of killing a whole family for a bag of gold and some pocket change. Are not the lives of Maria, Marco, Carlo, Sabrina and Melissa worth more than this? The fact that these little children are gone and we will never see them grow up is almost unbearable. Carlo’s pursuit of knowledge, the creativity of Sabrina, little Melissa’s spunk and courage and the three small voices that called Diane, their mother, never again will she hear.”

Judge Ryan spoke, “Thank you Mr. Allen, next representative on behalf of the people. Please spell your last name for the record.”

Marco Pesce’s best friend, Jerry Rugirello approached the side-bar. 

“R-u-g-i-r-e-l-l-o”

Ryan reminded Mr. Rugirello to once again, direct all comments to the court as opposed to the defendants. 

“Reasonable assurance exists that the prisoner will not become a menace to society or to the public safety,” Rugirello repeated that line twice. They were direct quotes taken from Wolfenbarger and Lincoln’s parole review. 

“Less than one year ago for Mr. Wolfenbarger and a shortly over a year ago for Mr. Lincoln the parole board saw fit to release these two out back to society. And I can’t help but to think that some of… some of the quid pro quo that Mr. Pitts was talking about during the trial exists in the corrections system and in the parole system.”

Lincoln’s lawyer, Cornelius Pitts had thrown the phrase ‘quid pro quo’ around numerous times during the trial. 

“But these two have been in prison most of their adult life, the last time for which was Armed Robbery. Now they robbed again and they chose to steal from each one of these family members here, the most precious life God has given us, five of them. They robbed us all for five precious lives at gunpoint, five lives that were full of hope, five lives that were full of inspiration. And that wasn’t enough; it wasn’t enough, the sentence that they received for their last Armed Robbery convictions. It wasn’t enough, the time that they served. It wasn’t enough that they were released and chose not to seek employment, chose to rob and steal again. That wasn’t enough.”

Wolfenbarger’s attorney, Richard Cunningham would later argue for the record that John had indeed tried to find work and was also attending school. A technicality… for the record. 

“But when they violated the sanctity of that home on December 21st, that still wasn’t enough. It wasn’t enough that they shot their way in. It wasn’t enough to kill a defenseless and helpless loving grandmother. It wasn’t enough, it wasn’t enough to shoot a man who did nothing, nothing in his life other than raise and love and adore his three children. He lived for those children and he died for those children. It wasn’t enough to kill him in cold blood.”

Rugirello kept it together the best he could as the tension in the courtroom became palpable.

“But then they had to cross the line, a line that had not been crossed by the most hardened criminals in American history. They had to cross the line and kill three beautiful, loving children, Carlo, Sabrina and Melissa. I wonder how much of a fight the six-year-old put up against two men armed with weapons. I just wonder what kind of a fight she put up and what kind of threat she was.”

Drawing in a deep breath, Rugirello wrapped up his comments.

“Today we’re here to formalize the fate of what we already know, that these two cowards are going to spend the rest of their lives in prison, that they’ll never see the light of day, and that they’ll never be able to pollute our society again. They’ll never be able to perpetrate such a terrible horrendous crime on any other family again. I say that’s not enough. It isn’t enough that they’ll go back to prison and become a number, nothing but a number for the rest of their living days. And for those of us who would like to see them put to death, I say that still would not be enough. But these two evil-minded, terrible, horrendous things, animals, one thing they cannot take away from us, they cannot take away the love, the memories and the legacy of Maria Vergati, Marco Pesce, Carlo Pesce, Sabrina Pesce and little Melissa. They’ll live on forever and ever in our hearts while these two scumbags rot in jail. Go to hell, John Wolfenbarger. Go to hell, Dennis Lincoln.”

And with that, it was over. All that remained was for the Honorable Judge Ryan to hand out the sentences. 

“Okay, Mr. Wolfenbarger, Mr. Cunningham, anything you wish to say before I proceed with sentencing at all?”

Wolfenbarger, as defiant as he had been since the day he was apprehended, chose not to address the court and chose not to apologize to the grieving family. He would maintain his innocence on the charges, something he maintains to this day. 

“No, I’ll stand mute.”

“Before I proceed with sentencing, I would like to indicate to Mr. Allen and Mr. Rugirello, this case is, by far, one of the most factually reprehensible cases that I have had to address as a trial judge in this state. Unfortunately Mr. Allen, I do not have the option of the punishment which would be appropriate for the individuals who have perpetrated this crime. That is a decision which is to be left to the legislature. All I can do is sentence the defendants to a crime within the parameters established by the legislature. Because of that, I am compelled and bound as a member of the judiciary to adhere to the guidelines as well as to statutory mandates. However, it is unfortunate that I do not have the option of the punishment which would be appropriate under these facts and circumstances.” 

Judge Ryan went on to list Wolfenbarger’s record and addressed the failure of the system that paroled him in August of 2002. 

1990 – Convicted of B & E Occupied Dwelling – Five to Fifteen Years

1994 – Convicted of Attempt to B & E Other Building – One to Five Years

1994 – Convicted of B & E Occupied Dwelling – Five to Fifteen Years

1994 – Convicted of Escape/Flight from Prison – Two to Seven Years

And there were more, any or all of which could have kept him in prison until well past the date of the Pesce murders. 

“Based upon the defendant’s past criminal record, the court finds that life in prison for Felon in Possession of a Firearm is appropriate. And then life without parole on the First Degree Premeditated Murder counts, on each of the five counts. The defendant was convicted as a result of a jury trial and does have an automatic right to an appeal.”

And he would appeal, numerous times for numerous reasons. 

Co-Defendant Dennis Lincoln was also sentenced to Life in Prison without the possibility of parole. I spoke with him in 2014 regarding his feelings on receiving the same sentence as Wolfenbarger, when evidence shows that Lincoln never entered the house. 

“Did your punishment fit the role you played in the Pesce murders?”

“The Felony murder statute states that if you and I go to 7-11 to steal bubble gum, and you shoot the clerk, you're getting life, and under the felony murder statute, I'm getting life as well. I would have preferred getting 25 years for participating in a robbery\home invasion. I do not believe I deserved a thousand life sentences, but I can appreciate the severity and I see the rub.”

I asked him if he were to become a free man today, would he exit the prison a changed man.

“Of course I would leave prison a changed person. Your perspective on everything changes when you get a life sentence… your attitude changes. You appreciate every little kindness, every little moment of actual living, if that makes sense. But that's me, I'm glass half full. The flip side to that is anger. Nothing to lose, nothing to care about, hair trigger temper. But, I'm a bit too level headed for that.”

But he wasn’t level headed enough to pick better friends.