Putnam prosecutors' plea deal to suspect in 2008 murder: Admit to minor offense and get out of jail now
Prosecutors recently told the 35-year-old murder suspect's defense team that if Grigoroff pleads guilty to his lesser charge of attempted burglary, he would be sentenced to time served and released from jail.
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A Putnam County man who's been in jail for the last 17 years, convicted of murder twice, and fought to overturn both convictions, has been offered a plea deal that would free him from prison.
But Anthony Grigoroff is choosing to stay in jail for now.
Prosecutors recently told the 35-year-old murder suspect's defense team that if Grigoroff pleads guilty to his lesser charge of attempted burglary, he would be sentenced to time served and released from jail.
But Grigoroff is not taking that deal.
"It's certainly tempting for Anthony," Grigoroff's attorney, Bruce Barket, said Tuesday after a conference on the case at Putnam County Court. "He can walk out the door tomorrow if he wants to, but it would come at a price of saying he's guilty of something that he has maintained his innocence of."
Putnam County District Attorney Robert Tendy has contended that Grigoroff was in a car outside Garrison Garage on Route 9 in December 2008 while another man tried to break into the business.
Prosecutors have said the business owner, 49-year-old John Marcinak, then arrived in a truck to confront the man, who then shot and killed Marcinak.
The defense has argued that investigators from the Putnam County Sheriff's Office used deceptive techniques during a 12-hour interrogation to steer Grigoroff into falsely confessing.
A four-judge appellate panel overturned the latest conviction, saying the judge was wrong to limit expert testimony about why false confessions happen.
The plea deal is still on the table and the defense has not ruled out accepting it.
They are waiting to receive officer personnel files and videos of past witness interviews from the prosecution before deciding.
"There's a good possibility that some of the evidence is going to be powerfully exculpatory," Barket said.
The defense may receive some or all of the requested evidence by the time Grigoroff returns to court on May 19.
They are still seeking Grigoroff's release from jail so he can better prepare for a potential third trial.
They are working on another bail application, Barket said, and if the county court judge does not eventually release Grigoroff on bail, they will go to an appellate court to try to get that decision overturned.
