43
Seman asks court to save house where three were killed
Lawyers want defense experts to conduct their own tests
By Joe Gorman
YOUNGSTOWN
Lawyers for the man who could face the death penalty if convicted of setting a fire that killed a girl he is accused of raping and her grandparents, asked a judge Tuesday to bar destruction of the home where the fire broke out.
The defense team for Robert Seman, 46, of West Calla Road in Green Township, filed its motion in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court asking that the 3631 Powers Way home be spared any demolition. This is so defense experts can conduct their own tests to see if the cause of the March 30 fire that killed 10-year-old Corinne Gump and her grandparents William and Judith Schmidt was arson.
Seman, who was accused of raping the girl, was to go on trial just hours after the fire broke out and was free on electronically monitored house arrest, faces 10 counts of aggravated murder, as well as counts of aggravated arson and aggravated burglary, and he could face the death penalty if convicted of the aggravated-murder charges.
The rape charges still are pending. A couple of weeks after the fire, bribery charges also were added because prosecutors said that Seman’s ex-wife had told them that Seman had offered her money if she would recant the story she told authorities.
In the motion filed Tuesday before Judge Maureen Sweeney, defense lawyers Lynn Maro and Tom Zena said that they need the home to be preserved because they have not yet had a chance to review discovery material to see what experts they need to retain. These experts would rebut claims by prosecutors that Seman set the blaze.
“The nature and cause of the Powers Way fire is critical to the defense,” the attorneys wrote.
The motion says that a review of several high-profile arson cases across the country within the last 30 years shows a history of “bad science,” because several murder convictions were overturned or remanded after defense experts have been able to review the evidence.
“The defendant denies committing arson, and the importance of the evidence located at the Powers Way address, to include the cause of the fire are critical issues that need independent review by an expert of the defense choosing,” the motion says.
The motion also says that not only does Seman deny setting the fire, he also claims he was nowhere near the home when the fire broke out.
Seman was not charged with the murders until the results of tests of samples taken from the home and sent to the state Bureau of Criminal Investigation were completed and the tests showed that an accelerant was used to start the blaze. Prosecutors also said that a gas can was found near the home.
Prosecutors have said that Seman somehow tampered with his electronic monitoring bracelet, but they will not be more specific. Investigators served a search warrant at his home a few days after the fire and seized several pieces of evidence, but they will not say what those are and the return on the search warrant remains sealed.
As of now, the rape and bribery cases against Seman still are separate from the charges Seman faces related to the fire.