twist of fait accomplis
Erika/Benjamain Sifrit Case
The Sifrits are in the appeal process right now. Erika is asking for Maryland's highest court to overturn her conviction citing a reneged verbal promise not to prosecute her for murder if she provided certain information about the case. Her husband Benjamin is arguing that the prosecution in his case presented two different theories about the murders and so his convictions should also be overturned.
From where I sit, it's unlikely either appeal will go through.
As was mentioned by a visitor, tonight is CourtTV's feature on the Sifrit case. Should be interesting, especially in the wake of recent news that Erika Sifrit is appealing her convictions on May 5.
The System airs at 10pm on CourtTV:
This one-hour documentary chronicles the chilling story of a couple who lured others to their condominium, toyed with their deepest fears, and eventually took their lives. Follow investigators through the crime scene as they gather evidence and decipher clues in their attempt to bring their suspects to justice.
Ocean City Today is reporting that CourtTV will air an hour-long television special about the Sifrit case. The special will air early next year.
Erika Sifrit sentenced to life plus 20 years
"Sifrit faced a maximum penalty of life plus 53 years for her crimes ... [she] avoided the death penalty as a result of a deal her lawyers, Arcangelo M. Tuminelli and Thomas R. Ceraso, made with prosecutors ... The defense attorneys said in June they would likely appeal the murder verdicts, citing a separate agreement Erika Sifrit made with prosecutors early on to cooperate in exchange for avoiding homicide charges. That agreement was thrown out after prosecutors said she had lied to them about some details of the crimes."
Today, Erika Sifrit is sentenced. She could receive up to life in prison.
Benjamin Sifrit has received 38 years in prison. Judge Paul H. Weinstein told Sifrit, "You're a butcher. You cut these people up for no reason." He also said that his trial was "one of the few instances in 20 years that I disagreed with the jury's verdict." Sifrit will be eligible for parole in 2032, after half his term is served. In addition to the maximum of 30 years, the judge also gave Sifrit "a combined three years for burglary and a weapons charge, and five more years for being an accessory after the fact in both deaths."
Sifrit chose not to read a prepared statement when asked by the judge if he had anything to say.
Today: Benjamin Sifrit is sentenced for his role in the Crutchley/Ford murders. He was convicted of the second-degree murder of Martha Crutchley and found not guilty of killing Joshua Ford. His wife, Erika Sifrit, was found guilty of the second-degree murder of Crutchley and the first-degree murder of Ford.
Benjamin Sifrit faces up to 30 years in prison. Erika will be sentenced later this year and faces up to life in prison with the possibility of parole.
After just a few hours of jury deliberations, Erika Sifrit has been found guilty of the second-degree murder of Martha Crutchley and the first-degree murder of Joshua Ford. She was found not guilty of using the handgun in Ford's murder but guilty on all other counts. She could be sentenced to life without with the possibility of parole.
Today the jury in Erika Sifrit's trial begin deliberations. In the closing arguments yesterday, the prosecution provided the press with a heavily-quoted (but also pretty appropriate) soundbite, referring to Erika as "Little Miss Scrapbook." Considering she came away from Benjamin's trial as "Crazy Erika," I guess this new nickname isn't so bad.
In addition to running a scrapbook store in Pennsylvania, Erika reportedly kept a number of keepsakes from the Crutchley-Ford murders, including a ring with traces of blood still visible, two bullet casings, both victims' driver's licenses, and pictures of the two from a bar.
The defense's closing arguments stated that Erika was a "fragile, psychologically weak young woman," who aided Benjamin out of love.
Erika Sifrit's defense rested their case on Friday, using only one day. Closing arguments are expected today.
As expected, the defense painted Benjamin Sifrit as the one who pulled the trigger, the same thing his defense with Erika at his trial earlier this year. More details about Friday's testimony can be read at The Herald-Mail Online.
According to one report today, discussing Erika Sifrit's trial:
Frederick County State's Attorney Scott Rolle said it's likely Erika Sifrit's jury does not know that her husband, Benjamin, was found guilty of second-degree murder in one of the two killings and cleared in the other.
"In a sense, his defense was blaming it on his wife, now his wife's coming to court and blaming it on him. So if indeed both juries would believe that, you could potentially have both of them acquitted even though we know one of them, if not both of them, did it" stated Rolle.
That would be an interesting (and, certainly, disturbing) situation: one or both of them could be guilty but neither found guilty of first-degree murder.
Prosecutors rested their case Thursday, the third day of testimony, but didn't offer a motive for the murders that happened just over a year ago. Jurors were played a 911 call recorded the night of the murders in the apartment complex where the Crutchleys lived. The woman on the call, thought to be Erika Sifrit, said she thought she was about to be robbed. In Benjamin Sifrit's trial, this call was said to be part of a plan of Erika's to explain any reported gunshots and that "Crazy Erika" killed the Crutchleys over an imagined robbery. (More...)
The defense will present their case starting Friday. It is unknown whether Erika Sifrit will be called to testify.
Welcome readers from The Daily Times (via the "Sensational case draws Web interest" story). The Sifrit case category is available here.
Jury chosen for OC murder trial
Today starts the murder trial for Erika Sifrit, held in Frederick, Maryland. She faces a maximum of life in prison with the possibility of parole.
I've set up an RSS feed based on Google News if you're interested in following the developments in her trial.
Thanks to Patrick for passing along this news story: Benjamin Sifrit has been convicted for the murder of Martha Crutchley, but was cleared in the murder of her husband, Joshua Ford. He was also convicted as an accessory for the dismemberment of the two bodies afterwards.
For more on the Sifrit case, see the fredericksburg.com archives.
Some interesting new updates in the Sifrit case: apparently, Benjamin is now claiming he was asleep in his Jeep while Erika killed Martha Crutchley and Joshua Ford. Benjamin is currently only trial, while Erika will face a jury in June.
There's been a lot of activity over in the Sifrit case archive, kind of surprisingly. Lots of friends and family of both the Sifrits and their unfortunate victims have been voicing their opinions on the case.
A piece of news posted by Ben in the comment section of my previous posted notes that "in court [on September 30], the judge ruled against Erika's attorneys motion to have the murder charges thrown out. Testimony given in the hearing indicated she was 'actively' involved in the murder but scant details." I assume this has something to do with what I read elsewhere about Erika having told Benjamin "Just kill them" (or something to that effect), which would no longer make her an innocent bystander. Read more here.
In addition, Benjamin Sifrit will now have a second defense attorney assisting on his case.
Change of venue sought in OC murder case
The state's attorney says the amount of publicity surrounding the case threatens Erika Sifrit's right to a fair trial and that it should be moved from Worcester County, Maryland. Benjamin Sifrit's lawyer is expected to make a similar appeal.
Reader Pamela sent along a pair of interesting developments in the Erika/Benjamin Sifrit case.
First is the report that prosecutors will not seek the death penalty for Benjamin Sifrit, at the request of the victims' families. They feel that the death penalty is too humane and would rather see Sifrit spend the rest of his life in jail without parole. His trial date is set for October 8th. Erika's is set for September 10th, and because she gave the police information about the crimes and the whereabouts of the bodies, the prosecution will seek neither death nor life without parole. Read more at Delmarvanow.com.
WBAL reports that there may be more trouble ahead for the Sifrits. In addition to being charged with the charged with first-degree murders of Martha Crutchley and Joshua Ford, authorities are investigating a possible link to the November 2001 murder of Dana Gates in Pennsylvania. Apparently, the night before the murder, the Sifrits were seen in the same bar as Gates. There were one or two minor similarities to the Crutchley/Ford murders. Right now, the Sifrits are considered "possible suspects."
A few updates to report...
First of all, you'll notice that the right menu has a link to the "Sifrit" category. This was to accomodate the many people searching for information about the case that wind up here.
SunSpot.net is reporting that Benjamin Sifrit's lawyer has formally requested the tape of the 911 call made from the Sifrits' rented condominium the night of the murders. The public defender has also requested access to the Sifrits' laptop in order to lookover the e-mails.
Robert passed along this AP wire piece. Apparently, the Sifrits pulled a gun on a nightclub employee as they tried to break into an ATM a few days after the murders. Erika Sifrit allegedly told the man, "I will kill you."
A few links to kick off the week:
More on the Erika Sifrit case, from early July. Ballistic tests show a match between the gun used to kill Joshua Ford and Martha Crutchley and the one found in Erika Sifrit's possession. Her lawyer maintains her innocence in a kinda-roundabout-non-direct way: "At the time these murders occurred, that gun was not in the possession of Erika Sifrit."
They're Coming to Get You, Barbara!... Cool name, cool blog.
What the Law Should Say About Cloning... An interesting—and balanced—week-long look at the issue of cloning. Warning: you will end up thinking should you read this series. Careful.
An update on yesterday's story: MWC grad Erika Sifrit (nee Grace) is now saying that she was present when her husband killed two people (whose remains may have been found yesterday at a Delaware landfill), but that she did not participate. The Sifrits, both 24, are from Altoona, PA and are being held in jail without bail.
The plot grows thicker...
More coverage:
A recent Mary Washington College graduate, Erika Grace (now Erika Sifrit), and her husband are charged with the murder of a Fairfax couple. I'd be willing to bet this is the first time this has happened in the college's history. Did any of you younger MWC folks know her? I'll have to look her up in my yearbook when I get home. (via Matt on the WMWC forums)
Updated: Here's a 1998 picture of the accused murderer from the MWC yearbook:
