Share this
Twitter
Myspace
Digg
Del.icio.us
Reddit
Slashdot
Furl
Yahoo
Technorati
Newsvine
Facebook
Export PDF
Print
E-mail
TagsLegal missteps lead to freedom for 79-year-old serving a life sentence
BY ALICIA CRUZ
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
Anthony Alongi, the second of three men convicted in the deaths of a North Miami Beach, Florida couple more than 25 years ago at the Jersey Shore may go free, albeit temporarily, as a result of legal blunder that occurred during his 1988 trial.
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the trial court erred when it violated Alongi's Sixth Amendment right to represent himself during his trial after firing the attorney he retained to represent him, Jack Russell.
The appellate court ruled that Alongi would be released and that prosecutors had until May 26 to contemplate retrying him for the murders of Barbara and Henry Nicholas "Nick" DeTournay.
Legal wrangling of Alongi's case began as early as 1988, the same year he was convicted, when Superior Court judge Steven Perskie threw out his murder conviction citing insufficient evidence and an error Perskie gave to jurors when he told them they could convict both men of murder even if the jurors believed the men had not participated in a conspiracy to kill the Detournays, but had served as accomplices by disposing of their bodies.Alongi's freedom was short lived after a New Jersey Appeals Court later reinstated his conviction and he remained incarcerated. Alongi was featured in the 1970's television documentary, "Scared Straight," which won an Emmy award.
"At this juncture all I can tell you is we have to evaluate it," William Heisler, the Ocean County's chief assistant prosecutor told the Daily Record in reference to the court's decision to overturn Alongi's conviction.
"When you go try a case 22 years later, things change as far as who's available and what testimony and evidence is available. We may be able to try him, but we may not."
The available testimony and evidence Heisler mentioned was likely a reference to the fact that key witnesses are either unavailable or dead like Joseph Marzeno, the shooter, who died in prison nearly 21 years ago.
Paul Kamienski was freed last year by the same appellate court that ruled on Alongi's case. The court found that evidence presented at Kamienski's trial was not sufficient to support his conviction.
He spent 22 years in prison before being released. His testimony could hurt the prosecution if Alongi's attorneys are allowed to tell jurors that Kamienski has been released from prison.
Alongi, Kamienski and Marzeno were tried for the 1983 double homicide of the DeTournays after a drug deal went sour.
Alongi knew Marzeno, but met Kamienski weeks earlier. All three men smoked cocaine together on several occasions. During that time Alongi, who was a realtor and local businessman, and Marzeno, a cocaine dealer, met the DeTournays at Kamienski's home on September 19, 1983 after Kamienski arranged to broker a deal for the couple to sell three kilograms of cocaine to Marzeno and Alongi.
That arrangement turned fatal when Marzeno suddenly pulled out a gun and shot the couple rather than pay for the drugs. The DeTournays bodies were found a week later floating in the Barnegat Bay. Both had been weighed down by cylinder blocks and shot execution style.
During the 1988 trial, prosecutors cited that Alongi and Kamienski helped Marzeno dispose of the couples body, a conception Kamienski has invariably denied.
All three men were convicted of first-degree murder, felony murder, and conspiracy to possess cocaine with the intent to distribute. Alongi and Kamienski were sentenced to life in prison with no eligibility for parole until they served 30 years of their life sentences. Marzeno was sentenced to 60 years in prison.
The courts ruling last week cleared the way for Alongi's transfer from the New Jersey State Prison to the Ocean County Jail on Thursday.
The sanctions placed against Alongi, 79, include a $1 million bond; Alongi must wear an electronic monitoring device and he is restricted to the Newark home of relative Julia Palma, but is free to spend Easter Sunday at the home of his brother, Paul Alongi. The agreement also allows him to attend religious services, meet with his attorney and see a doctor.
There has been no word if Alongi has retained an attorney or if he will be represented by Henry Liu, the Washington, D.C. attorney appointed to assist him in the appeal that led to his release or if it will be attorney Louis Esposito, who represented Alongi at his bail hearing.
Read the court's decision to overturn Alongi's conviction here:
http://www.leagle.com/unsecure/page.htm?shortname=infco20100225104
