Tobyhanna Army Depot awards 2015 Safety Area of the Year Awards.

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Residents begin to move in to River’s Edge condominiums in Pittston

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Closing arguments were heard Friday as a Luzerne County jury prepared to deliberate whether Jessica Lynn Alinsky was guilty of murder.</p><p>Prosecutors allege Alinsky, 32, shot her boyfriend, Matthew Gailie, in the face on Sept. 2, 2011 following an argument. In an attempt to stage a suicide, Alinsky planted a gun in Gailie&#8217;s hand and left a bank statement next to his body, they allege.</p><p>Throughout the investigation, prosecutors said Alinsky on several details changed her story when confronted with evidence that conflicted with her accounts.</p><p>Both the defense and prosecution in their closing remarks urged jurors to consider the evidence in deliberating on a verdict.</p><p>Defense attorney Demetrius Fannick argued the evidence points to reasonable doubt and an absence of malice. Alinsky&#8217;s lies, he said, didn&#8217;t mean she committed murder.</p><p>&#8220;Their case is simply, &#8216;She lied, so she&#8217;s guilty,&#8217;&#8221; Fannick said. &#8220;The case is not that simple.&#8221;</p><p>With all the power and resources of the Commonwealth on their side, prosecutors still took two years to file charges against Alinsky, he said.</p><p>&#8220;Don&#8217;t you want to ask yourselves why they&#8217;re so sure of their case?&#8221; Fannick asked jurors.</p><p>Assistant District Attorney Daniel Zola acknowledged the delay was lengthy, but only because there were just two people involved from the beginning: One was dead and the other lied repeatedly, he said.</p><p>&#8220;We had to work through every piece of evidence and every lie because we wanted to make sure we got it right and we did,&#8221; he said. &#8220;She shot Matthew that night. Period.&#8221;</p><p>Fannick had said Alinsky was interrogated by trained investigators, but Zola argued she told the same lies to her mother and sister. Alinsky only admitted to lying &#8220;when it was convenient to her and only after she was confronted with the real evidence,&#8221; he said.</p><p>&#8220;How hard is it to tell the truth if this was an accident or a suicide?&#8221; Zola asked.</p><p>Gailie, a 34-year-old corrections office at State Correctional Institution Frackville, was found dead on the living room floor of the Hazle Township home the two shared near Eagle Rock Resort.</p><p>Witnesses testified that the items placed near Gailie&#8217;s body could only have come from Alinsky. Call logs from the landline at the residence indicated Alinsky called 911 at 11:47, 16 minutes after a neighbor heard a gunshot.</p><p>Prosecutors said Alinsky used that time to manipulate the crime scene.</p><p>But Fannick argued the series of events that happened inside the couple&#8217;s home were traumatic and no one was watching the clock.</p><p>Zola held his cell phone up to jurors as he timed out the length Alinsky waited to call 911. Less than one minute in, he stopped.</p><p>&#8220;That was 50 seconds,&#8221; Zola said. &#8220;She had more than enough time to do what we allege she did, which is kill Matthew Gailie and stage the whole scene to make it look like a suicide that was financially related.&#8221;</p><p>Alinsky, charged with first-degree murder and tampering with evidence, faces life in prison if convicted. In 2014, she withdrew a third-degree murder plea that would have sent her to prison for 40 years.</p><p>Jurors began their deliberations just before 3 p.m.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Alinsky </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/web1_alinsky_2-12.jpg</photo0><caption0>Alinsky </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Joe Dolinsky</p><p>jdolinsky@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Joe Dolinsky at 570-991-6110 or on Twitter @JoeDolinskyTL</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Closing arguments heard, jury begins deliberating verdict in Jessica Alinsky homicide trial