Trial opens in South Franklin shooting
The trial began Tuesday in the case against a Washington man police accused of carrying out a botched execution-style attempt to kill another man in the woods of South Franklin Township.
The jury of eight men and four women heard testimony against Keith Rosario, 28, who faces charges filed by state police including attempted homicide, kidnapping and conspiracy.
Common Pleas Judge Valarie Costanzo is presiding over the trial.
The case stems from the alleged abduction of Marcus Stancik, 32, who survived being shot at the base of his skull on Sept. 5, 2017, by a former reservoir off Cove Road after being abducted outside in the West End of the city.
Deputy District Attorney Jason Walsh outlined the government’s case during his opening statement, telling jurors to let their “common sense” guide them in weighing the evidence.
Walsh told jurors they could expect the defense to question Stancik’s credibility as a witness. He told them Stancik had been the victim of an attempted execution and “it doesn’t matter” that he was homeless and addicted to drugs.
Kimberly Furmanek, who was appointed by the court to represent Rosario as conflict counsel, declined to give her opening argument until after the prosecution finishes presenting its evidence.
Stancik had been staying at the same house where Rosario was a resident after meeting Rosario’s alleged accomplice, 24-year-old Richard Lacks, outside a beer distributor about two weeks earlier.
Walsh described the house as being the center of a drug distribution operation involving Rosario, Lacks and another man who isn’t charged in the shooting.
Walsh also said Stancik and Lacks began a sexual relationship and used drugs together. Stancik also would help to distribute drugs for the others at the house.
Rosario later accused Stancik of being responsible for a gun that had gone missing from the house, prompting Stancik to leave on a drug delivery and not come back, according to the prosecution.
Stancik was abducted a few days later and driven to the scene of the shooting about five miles away, and he knelt by the water before he was shot once in the neck.
“But Mr. Stancik didn’t die,” Walsh told jurors during the opening. “He falls forward.”
In the water, Walsh said, Stancik began swimming and calling for help. Rosario allegedly tried to shoot him again, but the .22-caliber handgun he was using jammed, Walsh said.
A nearby resident called 911, and Stancik was still in the water when state police arrived. Walsh told jurors that Stancik immediately identified “Sin” – Rosario’s nickname, which Walsh repeated throughout his opening – as the person who’d shot him.
Court filings show Lacks is cooperating with the government. Prosecutors expect to call him as a witness against Rosario.
Lacks, 24, of Washington, faces charges similar to Rosario’s. His case is stayed pending Rosario’s trial.