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Crime & Safety

Bridgewater Man May Withdraw Guilty Murder Plea

Like co-defendant, Wilson may rely on false confession defense in Bradley Gardens killing.

A township man who pleaded guilty to a May 2009 Bradley Gardens murder may be considering the withdrawal of his plea after he learned that one of his co-defendants has obtained an expert witness on false confessions.

The news that Gary Wilson—who pleaded guilty in July 2011 to murdering Carolyn Stone, 45, in the backyard of a Bradley Gardens home during the 2009 Memorial Day weekend—is thinking of withdrawing the plea came Monday afternoon in Superior Court during a status conference for his co-defendant, David Granskie Jr.

Superior Court Judge John Pursel said Wilson has not formally filed a motion, but has written a letter to the court.

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“I’m not paying any attention to it,” the judge said, adding the letter will be forwarded to Wilson's lawyer..

Katharine Errickson, Granskie’s attorney, said Wilson has also been sending correspondence to her client, saying he might be willing to testify for Granskie.

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“It’s good to have friends,” Pursel said.

According to a plea agreement with the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office, Wilson, 28, will be sentenced to 45 years in state prison. That sentencing is tentatively scheduled for July. Because it is a first-degree crime, Wilson will have to serve 85 percent of the sentence, or 38 years, before being eligible for parole.

As part of the agreement, Wilson also agreed to testify against his two co-defendants, fellow Bridgewater residents Granskie and Rocky DiTaranto, who are still awaiting trial.

On Monday, Errickson told Pursel that her expert witness—Dr. Clarence Watson, a forensic psychiatrist and lawyer based in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania—had faxed his report to her Monday morning. The report contains information on Granskie’s background, including his heroin use and his parents, Errickson said.

“Most people don’t understand why people incriminate themselves,” Errickson told the judge. “We know that the phenomena occurs.”

Somerset County Assistant Prosecutor Joseph Rocchietti said he would need a month to review the report and decide whether to request a hearing on Watson’s credentials as an expert and whether the report can be entered into evidence as a permissable defense.

The next court appearance in the case is scheduled for May 30, three years after the murder.

Errickson also said that Granskie wanted to plead guilty to an outstanding heroin charge.

“He wants to get it taken care of,’’ she told Pursel.

Errickson said the prosecutor’s office has not offered a plea agreement to Granskie. Rocchietti said a plea agreement will not be offered because of the outstanding murder charge.

But Granskie, Errickson said, wants the heroin charge resolved so “if he’s acquitted on the murder charge, he goes home.”

In pleading guilty, Wilson told the judge that he and friends were attending a Memorial Day weekend barbecue at an Oak Street home, where Stone lived with , and became intoxicated after drinking alcohol, smoking marijuana and snorting cocaine. In the middle of the night, Wilson said, DiTaranto led Stone, who was also intoxicated, into the backyard of the home. 

Wilson said he went with them. From there, Wilson said, DiTaranto had sex with Stone on the ground, keeping his hands on her neck to keep her down. After DiTaranto had sex with her, Wilson said, he was supposed to have sex with her too, but didn't.

Wilson said he then dropped a cinder block on her head three times to keep her quiet.

Wilson's plea came after a hearing earlier in 2011 to determine if his right against self-incrimination had been violated. During interrogation by police in 2009, Wilson allegedly said, "I just murdered someone."

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