Death In Family Delays Porco Trial
The Chris Porco trial is on hold again until Monday, July 11th. On Monday, defense attorney Laurie Shanks walked into the courtroom in tears after learning her mother had died. The judge sent everyone home for the day and ordered a one week recess.
It was a day of delays. Earlier, the judge stopped proceedings and moved the trial to a different courtroom in the Orange County Courthouse, citing poor acoustics. Earlier in the trial headsets had been distributed in the courtroom to try to deal with the problem.
After that, jurors heard from Thruway toll collectors who said they remembered seeing a yellow jeep on the highway on the night in question.
That morning, defense attorney Terry Kindlon requested a motion to shut down the trial, saying he's worried that the prosecution will use elements of Christopher Porco's statement during a seven hour interrogation by Bethlehem Police from the day Peter Porco's body was found.
The interrogation had already been blocked from the trial by Judge Jeffrey Berry because he said it violated Porco's constitutional rights.
Chris Porco is accused of killing his father Peter and severly injuring his mother Joan in their Delmar home back in November of 2004.
