Chapter 12 - Repudiation Thursday September 22, 1966 When Thursday’s court session was convened, District Attorney Alvin B. Lewis Jr was seated in the front row along with several policemen. Because of Lewis’s involvement in the investigation, he was listed on the defense’s potential witness list. At the start of the trial Judge Gates had … Continue reading Chapter 12 – Repudiation
MIST
Chapter 11 – Confession
Chapter 11 - Confession Wednesday September 21, 1966 - Thursday September 22, 1966 As the third day of the trial began, the courtroom, which could hold about 90 spectators, was almost filled. Judge Gates had issued orders that standees would not be permitted. Mrs. Janice Barczynski, 112 E. Poplar St., Lebanon, had been an employee … Continue reading Chapter 11 – Confession
Chapter 10 – The Scene of the Crime
Chapter 10 - The Scene of the Crime Tuesday September 20, 1966 When court convened on Tuesday morning September 20 with the jury safely empaneled and sworn in, Assistant District Attorney R. Hart Beaver began his opening statement. The commonwealth would seek to prove that at about 4:00 AM on December 24 of the previous … Continue reading Chapter 10 – The Scene of the Crime
Chapter 9 – Voir Dire
Chapter 9 - Voir Dire Monday September 19, 1966 Most courtroom dramas don’t bother showing how the jury is chosen, leaving the viewer to assume that the twelve jurors arrived by drawing names out of a hat, or perhaps by some legal form of immaculate selection. In reality jury selection is often as critical … Continue reading Chapter 9 – Voir Dire
Chapter 8 – Can You Get Away With Murder in Lebanon County?
Chapter 8 - Can You Get Away With Murder in Lebanon County? August 1959 - June 12, 1963 I remember my mother often saying that you could get away with murder in Lebanon County—and she didn’t just mean that figuratively. She’d trot that out whenever there was a murder trial in the county. I confess … Continue reading Chapter 8 – Can You Get Away With Murder in Lebanon County?
Chapter 7 – Delay, Delay, Delay
Chapter 7 - Delay, Delay, Delay Saturday January 1, 1966 - Wednesday August 24, 1966 Dennis Terry Sites’s arraignment was scheduled for Friday January 7, 1966. Except it wasn’t. A couple days before the arraignment was to take place before Judge G. Thomas Gates, the Honorable Judge Gates patiently explained to anyone who would listen … Continue reading Chapter 7 – Delay, Delay, Delay
Chapter 6 – Preliminary Hearing
Chapter 6 - Preliminary Hearing Tuesday December 28, 1965 - Thursday December 30, 1965 Judge G. Thomas Gates wasted no time in appointing two defense counsel, H. Rank Bickel Jr. and Stanley W. Katz, to represent Dennis Terry Sites, the accused killer of Mrs. Carrie Batdorff Layser, at a cost of $500 each plus reasonable … Continue reading Chapter 6 – Preliminary Hearing
Chapter 5 – Dennis Terry Sites
Chapter 5 - Dennis Terry Sites February 7, 1943 - December 23, 1965 Dennis Terry Sites was born on February 7, 1943, to George P. and Helen Hewitt Sites; he was the sixth of seven children that Newmanstown, Pennsylvania, couple was to have. At the age of two an accident caused a piece of glass … Continue reading Chapter 5 – Dennis Terry Sites
Chapter 4 – The Investigation
Chapter 4 - The Investigation Friday December 24, 1965 - Tuesday December 27, 1965 Officer Sheetz alerted the Pennsylvania State Police and shortly a crew of investigators descended on Richland and began the process of scouring the crime scene and interviewing neighbors to try to find anyone who may have seen anything suspicious. Carrie Layser’s … Continue reading Chapter 4 – The Investigation
Chapter 3 – Where’s Dennis?
Chapter 3 - Where's Dennis? Thursday December 23, 1965 - Friday December 24, 1965 According to later accounts Dennis Sites arrived at the Rising Sun Hotel between 8:00 and 8:30 the evening of December 23 and ordered a beer, the first of many he would consume that night, from the proprietor, Donald Ray Strickler. He … Continue reading Chapter 3 – Where’s Dennis?