Putnam man's murder conviction overturned for a second time; DA and defense prepare for 3rd trial
Anthony Grigoroff was convicted in the 2008 murder of John Marcinak, 49, outside Marcinak's business, Garrison Garage, on Route 9.
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The Putnam County District Attorney's Office and Anthony Grigoroff's defense team are preparing for a third trial following an appellate court ruling overturning his murder conviction.
Grigoroff was convicted in the 2008 murder of John Marcinak, 49, outside Marcinak's business, Garrison Garage, on Route 9.
Prosecutors said Grigoroff and his twin brother Eric were in a car, while another man got out to break into the business. They say Marcinak confronted the man, who then shot and killed Marcinak.
After a confession that his attorneys have said was false, Grigoroff was charged and later convicted of murder. He was 19 at the time. The man prosecutors said shot Marcinak was never charged.
A four-judge appellate court panel overturned the conviction, writing that some third-party statements and a separate shooting involving Grigoroff's brother should not have been admitted as evidence.
"That conduct had nothing to do with the crime that was being tried," Grigoroff's attorney Danielle Muscatello said Monday of the first trial.
Grigoroff was tried and convicted again in 2017, and Muscatello appealed again.
The same appeals court issued a ruling Wednesday saying the judge presiding over the second trial erred in restricting testimony by the defense's expert about false confessions. The confession, which came after 12 hours of interrogation, was the only evidence against Grigoroff.
"It's really not a phenomenon anymore. It's something that happens. People do falsely confess," Muscatello said in a Zoom interview. "If we can fully present that and educate a jury on that I think we'll be successful."
Putnam District Attorney Robert Tendy said Monday he does not do interviews on open cases.
"While we don't agree with the legal analysis, we are bound by the decision," Tendy said in an emailed statement, "and are already in the process of getting the case ready for trial."
The retrial date has not yet been set. Muscatello plans to submit a bail application to try to secure Grigoroff's release from prison while they prepare for the third trial. He has been in prison for 17 years.
Following his first conviction, Grigoroff was originally sentenced to 25 years to life.
