Attorney For New Lenox Man in Coma Punch Case Argues For New Trial
The judge will decide next month if Joseph Messina, who was convicted of throwing the punch that put Eric Bartels of Joliet into a coma, will be tried again.
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Lawyers for the New Lenox man convicted in January of punching a Joliet man into a coma outside a Mokena bar argued Wednesday that he should either be acquitted or get a new trial.
Attorney Dave Carlson said there wasn't enough evidence for Joseph Messina, 24, to be found guilty of beating Eric Bartels outside the Mokena bar 191 South in July 2009. The attack left Bartels, 29, in a coma.
Carlson pointed out that three key prosecution witnesses swore Messina was wearing shorts the night of the attack when he was actually wearing long pants. Carlson also claimed it was one of Messina's friends, Michael Glielmi, formerly of Manhattan, who punched Bartels, but that he was denied the opportunity to question Glielmi.
Glielmi invoked his constitutional right to not incriminate himself, but Carlson said Judge Sarah Jones should have made clear what crime Glielmi feared he would be linked to by testifying.
Carlson also brought up that Mokena police Detective Greg Selin testified that he photographed Messina's hands after the New Lenox man was arrested, but when no one could find the pictures, Selin said under oath that he didn't photograph Messina's hands after all.
Not only that, Carlson said, but police department surveilance video shows Selin taking some photos of Messina, but 17 seconds of the footage is mysteriously missing.
Messina's sentencing had been scheduled for Wednesday but Judge Sarah Jones said she will decide whether to grant a new trial—or even go ahead and find Messina not guilty—next month. If Jones does not reverse the verdict or grant a new trial, she said she will head straight to sentencing.
Gilemi is a coward
8:14 pm on Wednesday, March 6, 2013
I can't wait to see gilemi go down for this
Gilemi is a coward
8:21 pm on Wednesday, March 6, 2013
The proof alone is that the key witnesses all put joe in the wrong clothes and all you people on here who trashed joe can finally see the truth that mike gilemi is truly a coward and joe is a stand up guy for not rolling over on him. Even though that pos wouldn't do the same for him. And all the people that you claimed lied under oath to throw mike under the bus were actually telling the truth so piss off.
Free joe
Harry Callahan
8:23 am on Saturday, March 9, 2013
Tell me something who does your friend JOE know???? If the judge doesn't know what to do and speaks of it.I'm waiting???????.
qetesh
9:43 pm on Thursday, March 14, 2013
Joe is a stand-up guy for letting someone who almost killed someone go free? I do not think that phrase means what you think it means. Was he hiding the back of the van after he assaulted someone because he is a stand-up guy? Let him face the truth that his is guilty and needs to become something better.
anonymous
10:09 pm on Wednesday, March 6, 2013
this whole thing is bizzare and disturbing and was poorly handled by police.
Louis Lipps
3:06 pm on Thursday, March 7, 2013
Based on the little information here this young man at the very least deserves to be retried. He clearly did not get a fair trial the first time around. Is this in Will or Cook county courts?
Will County Resident
2:02 am on Friday, March 8, 2013
Will
Opticjic@sbcglobal.net
11:48 pm on Sunday, March 10, 2013
JOEY IS INNOCENT!!! LET THIS POOR KID LIVE HIS LIFE AND LEAVE THIS POOR FAMILY ALONE!!!! WHAT HAPPENED TO: BEING INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY???? Sounds to me like there is too many mistakes made by the police to charge anyone for anything!!
qetesh
9:57 pm on Thursday, March 14, 2013
Mistakes made the police do not make a guilty man innocent. The mistakes made the police did not him guilty, either. He was found guilty by a court of law. Writing incorrectly (there is too many mistakes) and in all CAPS will not help him face the truth. If you really want to help him, let him face the truth and consequences of his actions.
Norm
5:10 pm on Monday, March 25, 2013
Hey Pot, your kettle is black! After posting two lines of jibberish, you chastise a poster for making mistakes. Ha!
qetesh
9:41 pm on Thursday, March 14, 2013
He was proven guilty. I guess running away and hiding in the back of a van after he assaulted someone was not a good enough act to hide his guilt? Or the witnesses that were actually there that saw him assault someone?
Do you really think poorly written social media posts will change his guilt? Let him take his punishment and then move on. Trying to change the lie that he is innocent is just going to ruin the rest of his life. Let him face the reality of his actions and become a better person. A lying rat that hides in a parked van has a lot of growing and accepting to do.
qetesh
12:23 am on Sunday, March 17, 2013
Why does every guilty person wear a dorky sweater vest and button down shirt when they are on trial? Eventually, we will just assume that is the look of all psychopaths and wanna-be murderers. Great choice there, innocent one.
Norm
5:15 pm on Monday, March 25, 2013
And what do internet trolls wear when they post inane garbage on a comment board? Nevermind, I don't want to know.
dfsfsd
9:19 pm on Sunday, May 12, 2013
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