Fayette deer DNA case shooter seeks new trial

A Fayette County man serving life in prison after deer DNA helped to convict him of homicide wants a federal judge to grant him a new trial.

Lawrence J. Cseripko, 65, was found guilty in 2005 of first-degree murder in the death of Paul J. Horvat Jr. at a Menallen Township farm in December 1997. The case went unsolved until 2004, when state police produced evidence showing an identical genetic match of venison taken from Cseripko's freezer in March 1998 to deer entrails and blood found near the victim's body.

In the self-filed motion in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh, Cseripko argues the deer DNA and other evidence, including testimony that he was near the murder scene and had argued a year earlier with the victim, were insufficient to convict.

"This deer DNA 'junk' science is the only link between the defendant and this murder," Cseripko wrote. "It has never been subjected to a hearing to evaluate its validity in the state of Pennsylvania, and certainly was not recognized by the judge taking judicial notice of its validity, in this case."

Horvat's body was found in a creek under a foot bridge, some 16 hours after a witness testified he saw both men in separate areas of the farm. Police said Horvat was shot three times with a .243-caliber rifle.

In addition to challenging the findings from the deer DNA, Cseripko contends his "mere presence" at the crime scene, coupled with the year-old argument between the two men, does not establish guilt. He notes that the farm was open to other hunters, and that "these other hunters also had animosity" toward Horvat.

"These pieces of evidence, coupled with the scientifically unverified comparison of deer DNA, can only lead to speculation about the identity of the murderer and should not have been submitted to a jury," Cseripko wrote.

Other claims Cseripko is making in the federal filing include ineffective trial counsel. Cseripko contends character witnesses should have been called on his behalf, and he should have been called to testify in his own defense.

The federal filing follows Horvat's unsuccessful appeals in Superior Court and locally under the state's Post Conviction Relief Act.

Cseripko, who is being held at the State Correctional Institute at Albion in Erie County, wants a federal judge to set him free or order a new trial.