THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, August 30, 1995 TAG: 9508300515
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ANGELITA PLEMMER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Long : 136 lines
A judge sentenced Derek R. Barnabei to death Tuesday for murdering a college student - despite Barnabei's repeated protests of innocence and an emotional, rambling diatribe in which he attacked prosecutors, detectives, the judge and the media.
Judge William F. Rutherford sentenced Barnabei to die for the September 1993 rape and murder of Old Dominion University student Sarah J. Wisnosky, a 17-year-old freshman from Lynchburg.
Barnabei's was the first death sentence handed down in Norfolk in 16 years.
The ruling ``will not alter the lasting hell you will be living in from this point forward,'' Rutherford said to the Wisnosky and Barnabei families before pronouncing sentence.
Barnabei, who will appeal the case, was convicted by a jury in June of raping, strangling and beating Wisnosky to death. Jurors recommended that he receive the death penalty for the murder conviction and 13 years in prison for the rape conviction.
``It amazes me how the lies continue . . . and how the lies permeate the whole case,'' Barnabei said before the sentencing, standing behind the defense table and surrounded by several sheriff's deputies.
``This man is the liar,'' he said, pointing to Commonwealth's Attorney Charles Griffith, who prosecuted the case. ``My trial has not revealed the truth.''
``The evidence is he cares about one person and that's himself,'' Griffith said before Barnabei's statement. ``. . . Underneath that slick exterior, he's a cold and heartless user and abuser, and now a killer.''
Reading from a prepared statement, Barnabei said he knew who committed the murder. He named a fraternity member and another man who, he said, had been spurned by Wisnoksy after they had made advances. But sloppy police work by detectives failed to turn up these suspects, Barnabei said.
Barnabei also accused prosecutors of painting a false picture of his relationship with Wisnosky and telling jurors half-truths or outright lies during the four-week trial. For example, Barnabei displayed a high school diploma; prosecutors had falsely portrayed him, he said, as a high school dropout.
At one point Rutherford ordered deputies to remove Barnabei from the courtroom because he was directing his remarks at Griffith instead of the bench.
After a five-minute recess, Barnabei returned and continued to read from his notebook.
``A conviction became a golden opportunity to boost ratings and to sell papers,'' Barnabei said, calling the publicity his case has received a ``media feeding frenzy.''
He also compared himself to O.J. Simpson - stating that despite the money his parents paid his lawyers after putting a second mortgage on their home, he still did not receive justice.
Nearing the end of his diatribe, Barnabei called Rutherford the ``most ignorant, shallow man that has ever heralded a judiciary.''
Barnabei ended his remarks by quoting the Bible and Socrates.
James Broccoletti, Barnabei's defense attorney, said the case has several grounds for an appeal. Citing errors in the jury's instructions and other evidence, Broccoletti said an appeals court could overturn the conviction and sentence.
Wisnosky was discovered Sept. 22, 1993, by police, her nude body floating face-down in the Lafayette River near the 5000 block of Mayflower Road. She had been struck at least 10 times in the face and head with a blunt object, possibly a ball-peen hammer.
NORFOLK - A judge sentenced Derek R. Barnabei to death Tuesday for murdering a college student - despite Barnabei's repeated protests of innocence and an emotional, rambling diatribe in which he attacked prosecutors, detectives, the judge and the media.
Judge William F. Rutherford sentenced Barnabei to die for the September 1993 rape and murder of Old Dominion University student Sarah J. Wisnosky, a 17-year-old freshman from Lynchburg.
Barnabei's was the first death sentence handed down in Norfolk in 16 years.
The ruling ``will not alter the lasting hell you will be living in from this point forward,'' Rutherford said to the Wisnosky and Barnabei families before pronouncing sentence.
Barnabei, who will appeal the case, was convicted by a jury in June of raping, strangling and beating Wisnosky to death. Jurors recommended that he receive the death penalty for the murder conviction and 13 years in prison for the rape conviction.
``It amazes me how the lies continue . . . and how the lies permeate the whole case,'' Barnabei said before the sentencing, standing behind the defense table and surrounded by several sheriff's deputies.
``This man is the liar,'' he said, pointing to Commonwealth's Attorney Charles Griffith, who prosecuted the case. ``My trial has not revealed the truth.''
``The evidence is he cares about one person and that's himself,'' Griffith said before Barnabei's statement. ``. . . Underneath that slick exterior, he's a cold and heartless user and abuser, and now a killer.''
Reading from a prepared statement, Barnabei said he knew who committed the murder. He named a fraternity member and another man who, he said, had been spurned by Wisnoksy after they had made advances. But sloppy police work by detectives failed to turn up these suspects, Barnabei said.
Barnabei also accused prosecutors of painting a false picture of his relationship with Wisnosky and telling jurors half-truths or outright lies during the four-week trial. For example, Barnabei displayed a high school diploma; prosecutors had falsely portrayed him, he said, as a high school dropout.
At one point Rutherford ordered deputies to remove Barnabei from the courtroom because he was directing his remarks at Griffith instead of the bench.
After a five-minute recess, Barnabei returned and continued to read from his notebook.
``A conviction became a golden opportunity to boost ratings and to sell papers,'' Barnabei said, calling the publicity his case has received a ``media feeding frenzy.''
He also compared himself to O.J. Simpson - stating that despite the money his parents paid his lawyers after putting a second mortgage on their home, he still did not receive justice.
Nearing the end of his diatribe, Barnabei called Rutherford the ``most ignorant, shallow man that has ever heralded a judiciary.''
Barnabei ended his remarks by quoting the Bible and Socrates.
James Broccoletti, Barnabei's defense attorney, said the case has several grounds for an appeal. Citing errors in the jury's instructions and other evidence, Broccoletti said an appeals court could overturn the conviction and sentence.
Wisnosky was discovered Sept. 22, 1993, by police, her nude body floating face-down in the Lafayette River near the 5000 block of Mayflower Road. She had been struck at least 10 times in the face and head with a blunt object, possibly a ball-peen hammer. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
D. KEVIN ELLIOTT/Staff
Derek R. Barnabei, the first felon to be sentenced to death in
Norfolk in 16 years, is escorted into a Norfolk court on Tuesday.
KEYWORDS: MURDER RAPE SEX CRIME TRIAL
SENTENCING by CNB