A Westmoreland County Judge has ruled that Ray Shetler, Jr.’s rights to a speedy trial have not been violated and charges against him will not be dropped.
Shetler was arrested in December of 2021 after allegedly attacking an officer as he was being taken into custody on a warrant at a mobile home in Seward. He was wanted for failing to appear for a probation revocation hearing. Shetler’s attorney, assistant public defender Mike Garafalo said in a hearing on Wednesday that because the Westmoreland County Courts schedule trials for criminal defendants during one five-day period a month, Shetler’s trial was delayed beyond the limits in place in Pennsylvania’s speedy trial laws. Prosecutors claimed that the defense had also requested some delays, and they had no control over the court schedule.
Judge Meghan Billik-Defazio said that taking defense delays into account, the prosecution has 51 days to bring Shetler’s case to trial. The trial is scheduled to start next Monday, but assistant public defender Jennifer DeFlitch says that the judge’s decision will be appealed, so the trial could be delayed further.
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