Man charged with trying to slay grandfather

The ages of the victims ranged from 5 to 64.
LANCASTER, Pa. (AP) -- A man charged with killing six relatives in the family home also had attempted to travel to New York to kill his grandfather and was stopped only by car trouble, prosecutors allege in a new count filed Friday.
The bodies of Jesse D. "Jay" Wise Jr.'s relatives were not yet discovered when police say Wise and a 16-year-old girl drove toward New York in the Mercedes sport-utility vehicle that belonged to his slain grandmother.
The girl, Angelica Gillogly, testified in a preliminary hearing Friday that Wise told her he was going to bring drugs back from New York and that he "had to finish what [he] started." His grandfather, Jessie L. Wise, was in Brooklyn, away from the family home in Leola, a small village about 60 miles west of Philadelphia.
The SUV broke down outside Philadelphia early April 11, and a friend gave Jay Wise and Gillogly a ride back to Lancaster County, police said.
Victims
Wise's grandmother, two aunts, an uncle and two cousins had been stabbed, bludgeoned, possibly strangled, and left wrapped in sheets and blankets. Their bodies were found a day later in the basement of the home.
Wise, 21, was quickly apprehended nearby. Investigators have not offered a motive for the slayings.
A judge on Friday determined there is enough evidence to try Wise, both on the six homicide charges and the new attempted homicide count.
Jessie L. Wise, reached by phone Friday, declined to comment.
Gillogly testified she was under the influence of drugs or alcohol the night she and Wise headed east, but Lancaster County prosecutor Craig Stedman objected and the judge stopped her short. Gillogly also was prevented from saying whether Wise also had been on drugs or alcohol.
Police have said Wise confessed killing his relatives, ages 5 to 64. His girlfriend, Jackie Boots, testified Friday that he also told her about the slayings before his arrest. The testimony contradicted Boots' account in interviews with The Associated Press last month in which she said Wise had given her no hint about the killings.
It took three or four days for the bodies to be discovered, during which time authorities allege Wise used his victims' cash, checks or credit cards to go shopping.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.