A three-member panel of state Superior Court judges last week rejected Jeffrey J. Marsalis’ request for a new trial.
Marsalis, 42, sexually assaulted three women in Philadelphia, prior to traveling to Idaho and raping a lesbian there. But Marsalis claims his local convictions were erroneous, and that he didn’t receive a fair trial in 2007.
According to Marsalis, he was hampered from presenting an adequate defense, largely due to the biases of the trial judge, Steven R. Geroff.
Marsalis contends that Geroff should have recused himself from the case because he continually exhibited hostility to Marsalis during the jury trial. Moreover, Marsalis claims he has evidence establishing that he wasn’t in Pennsylvania on Jan. 2, 2004, when he allegedly raped and drugged a local woman.
If that evidence had been introduced during his 2007 trial, its outcome would have been different, according to Marsalis.
In a 14-page ruling issued March 7, the three-judge panel rejected Marsalis’ arguments.
The judges are John T. Bender, Judith F. Olson and William H. Platt.
They said Marsalis had a fair trial, and Geroff actually went beyond what was necessary to ensure his proper treatment.
“After review of the record, we conclude that it does not reveal impartiality on the part of [Geroff], and that [Marsalis] has not met his burden of establishing bias, prejudice or unfairness necessitating recusal,” the judges wrote. “In fact, a review of a [court] hearing transcript indicates that [Geroff] went out of his way to help [Marsalis] with shipping costs for legal materials, stating, ‘I will do the best I can for you.’”
Marsalis also claims the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office should have been disqualified from prosecuting him, because it wrongfully accused him of raping a local assistant district attorney.
Marsalis contends the D.A.’s Office prosecuted him in an unprofessional and retaliatory manner.
But the judges said Marsalis failed to cite any pertinent legal authority to support his claim that the D.A.’s Office should be disqualified from involvement in the case.
The judges noted that the D.A.’s prosecution of Marsalis has concluded, and the agency only continues to participate in the matter due to ongoing appeals by Marsalis.
“[Marsalis] initiated these post-conviction proceedings and the district attorney’s office is a necessary party,” the ruling states.
Another major complaint of Marsalis is that Geroff refused to hold a post-conviction evidentiary hearing to determine if additional evidence could exonerate Marsalis.
“Although [Geroff] did not hold an evidentiary hearing, [he] carefully and thoroughly examined [Marsalis’] plethora of issues and concluded that they lacked merit,” the ruling states. “After reviewing the issues raised, we discern no abuse of discretion in [Geroff’s] decision to decline to hold a hearing.”
Marsalis has until April 6 to file an appeal in state Supreme Court. He couldn’t be reached for comment.
Cameron Kline, a spokesperson for the Philadelphia D.A.’s Office, declined to comment for this story.
Marsalis is currently serving a 10-and-a-half to 21-year term at a state prison in Marienville.
Marsalis is eligible to apply for parole next year. If released, he’s expected to serve a 14-year prison sentence in Idaho for raping a lesbian in that state, according to court records.