A Pennsylvania judge ruled Friday that a 70-year-old Philadelphia woman accused of stabbing a man dead will stand trial for the killing.
According to the Mercury News, Montgomery County District Court Judge Todd Barnes said prosecutors provided adequate preliminary evidence for the case to proceed to trial against Renee DiPietro, following the June 10 death of 31-year-old Michael Thomas Sides.
Prosecutors said Lower Marion Township officers responded around 1:30 a.m. on June 10 to a reported stabbing at the intersection of Cricket Avenue and Cricket Terrace in Philadelphia. They discovered Sides bleeding profusely from stab wounds.
First responders rushed Sides to the Lankenau Medical Center but he was pronounced dead by 2:38 a.m.
Dan Rogers, a friend of the victim told investigators that Sides was “sucker punched” at a bar by a man identified as Jason DiPetro, the suspect’s son. Sides then later went to “seek” Jason DiPetro out, the friend said, according to Law & Crime.
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Rogers reportedly added that Sides saw Jason DiPetro getting into a with Jason’s parents when a scuffle broke out. The parents exited the car while Sides prevented Jason from getting out. The suspect, in turn, lunged at Sides with a black cane.
“The victim prevents Jason DiPietro from entering the vehicle and engaged in a physical assault with him,” an arrest affidavit read. “The victim was not armed with any type of weapon.”
Renee DiPietro then began stabbing the victim and “then appeared to strike the victim after he was on the ground with the weapon,” the affidavit read.
“Rogers stated it was then apparent to him that the female stabbed the victim,” the affidavit continued.
“Following the stabbing, Rogers stated the female was attempted to remove the license plate from the vehicle and the older white male, the female and Jason DiPietro departed from the scene in the white sedan, believed to be a Nissan.”
Security footage from the incident and witness testimony was enough to establish probable cause to move forward with the trial.
Renee DiPietro is facing charges of third-degree murder, possession of an instrument of crime with intent, and involuntary manslaughter. The trial is scheduled to start November 8.
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[Feature Photo: Renee DiPietro/Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office]
