A Schuylkill County jury acquitted Joseph Disabella, of Sugarloaf, Luzerne County, of the crimes of indecent assault of a minor and corruption of minors Wednesday morning.
The jury of 8 men and 4 women spent little time deliberating their verdict, closing a two-day trial at Schuylkill County Courthouse.
Disabella was accused of inappropriately touching a minor girl at a November 2024 family holiday gathering in Kelayres, Kline Township.
As the jury’s verdict was read in Courtroom 4, Disabella’s wife, Emily, began sobbing and fell into the arms of her mother, Wanda Black, who hosted the holiday party.
Defense attorney Sud Patel said afterward that he was “thrilled” with the verdict and hopes that his client can be reinstated at his job as a teacher at Hazleton Area Career Center.
He said, “The jury paid attention to the law.”
Patel said this case has been a trying time for Disabella and the extended family involved.
“Mr. Disabella has waited a long time. It’s been a huge weight on them,” Patel said.
Day 2 of this trial began Wednesday morning with closing arguments from Patel and Assistant District Attorney Tom Pellish.
Each side made their case regarding the inconsistencies in the testimony of the accuser. Patel also stressed the importance of reasonable doubt to jurors.
“Even minor inconsistencies can create reasonable doubt,” Patel said. “(The Commonwealth) knew there was inconsistencies but here we are.”
Pellish defended the inconsistencies in the accuser’s testimony. He told jurors that they likely didn’t remember every detail about their trip to the Courthouse that morning so they shouldn’t expect a juvenile to remember every detail about the day in question.
And it should be unfair to expect every witness that the defense called to remember minutia such as how many times a guest at a party went to the bathroom that day.
“We don’t expect to be witnesses to a crime. We don’t expect to be victims of a crime,” he said. “She didn’t expect to go to her grandmother’s to be touched inappropriately.”
Pellish also asked jurors to think of the motives of everyone involved in the case. He said that the defense witnesses had a lot to lose if Disabella had been found guilty. He said the accuser didn’t have such motives.
“Wat motives does she have to lie,” he asked.
Patel acknowledged the difficulty in trying to discredit a juvenile victim, as he was forced to do in this trial.
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DAY 1 COVERAGE: Jurors Hear From Accuser, Defendant in Schuylkill County Holiday Party Indecent Assault of Minor Case
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