Statements a 12-year-old murder suspect gave to police in both Illinois and Indiana will not be suppressed if the case goes to trial.
Kosciusko Circuit Court Judge Rex Reed heard testimony from several witnesses Oct. 5 during a hearing about the motion to suppress statements Paul H. Gingerich gave to police in Peru, Ill., and Kosciusko County April 21 regarding the murder of Phillip Danner of Cromwell. At the conclusion of the hearing, Reed said he would take the issue under advisement and issue an order.
Gingerich is accused of taking part in the Danner's murder April 20. Gingerich and Colt Lundy, Danner's stepson, reportedly were the triggermen in the slaying. On Sept. 27, Lundy, 15, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder, and was sentenced to 30 years in prison with the final five years suspended for probation. As part of the plea agreement, one count of murder and one count of aiding, abetting or inducing murder against Lundy were dismissed.
Friday, Judge Reed made the decision to deny three motions from Gingerich's defense team: one to suppress both statements, one to suppress the Illinois statement and one to suppress the Indiana statement.
During the suppression hearing Oct. 5, Reed heard testimony from Robert A. Pyszka, deputy chief of police in Peru, Ill.; Jon Tyler, detective at the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department; Gingerich's parents, Paul and Nicole Gingerich; and defendant Paul Gingerich.
Gingerich, Lundy and Chase Williams, 12, allegedly used Lundy's mother's car to flee the scene of Danner's murder and were headed to Arizona when they stopped at a Walmart in Peru, Ill., in the early morning hours of April 21. The boys were detained by Peru, Ill., police and returned to Indiana the same day.
Gingerich's attorneys submitted a motion to suppress the statements he made during police interviews the day after Danner's murder, saying that he did not understand his rights and that his parents were not able to adequately discuss his rights with him. However, Peru, Ill., police received permission to talk with the boy from his parents, and his mother, Paul and his mother Nicole Gingerich signed a waiver form before he was interviewed by Kosciusko County Sheriff's Detective Jon Tyler.
