BUTER COUNTY, Ohio — A hearing scheduled for a motion to suppress evidence in the case of a man charged with killing his wife and three other family members in West Chester Twp. last year has been rescheduled, The Journal-News reported.
Gurpreet Singh, 37, is charged with four counts of aggravated murder. With specifications of using a firearm and killing two or more persons, Singh faces the death penalty if convicted. He is being held in the Butler County Jail without bond, and his trial is scheduled to begin Sept 21.
Singh is accused of killing his wife, Shalinderjit Kaur, 39; his in-laws, Hakikat Singh Pannag, 59, and Parmjit Kaur, 62; and his aunt by marriage, Amarjit Kaur, 58, at their apartment.
All died of gunshot wounds.The hearing for motion to supress evidence and statements by Singh filed by the defense team began in March with a day-long court session in Butler County Common Pleas Judge Greg Howard’s courtroom. The hearing was scheduled to continue two weeks later, but it was moved to Monday.
That hearing date has been moved to June 22. It is possible a new trial date will be set at that hearing.
During the March hearing, the defense argued Singh’s rights were violated when he was questioned while handcuffed outside the scene and at the police department.
But prosecutors say Singh was handcuffed for about 10 minutes for officer safety and as a witness when they found him bloody in the stairwell of the Wyndtree Drive apartment building on April 28, 2019.
At the hearing, body camera video was played from the moments after he called 911 saying he found his family bleeding and police arrived.
“What happened?” West Chester officers ask Singh. “I don’t know, everybody bleeding,” Singh answers while lying on his belly in the stairwell of the complex.
His bloody hands are cuffed behind his back in the video.
Defense attorneys Charles H. and Charles M. Rittgers and Neal Schuett argued Singh’s constitutional rights were violated during a five-hour interrogation by West Chester police, so they want evidence gathered during interrogation suppressed.
“During those five hours, Mr. Singh repeatedly asked to speak with his children, his family members and to a lawyer,” a defense motion says. “It was not until after two hours of interrogation that Mr. Singh was read his Miranda rights. At that point, Mr. Singh refused to make any further statements and unequivocally ascertained his right to counsel.
“However, Mr. Singh was prevented from leaving the interrogation room, and he was told on multiple occasions that he was ‘detained’ and that he was ‘not free to leave.’”
Prosecutors say Singh’s rights were not violated and the defense fails to identify any particular statements they are seeking to suppress.
The Journal-News is a media partner of WCPO.
