(Clockwise from top left) John Granat Jr., 17; Christopher Wyma, 17; Mohammad Salahat, 17; and Ehab Qasem, 19, are charged with the murder of Granat’s parents on Sept. 11, 2011, in their Palos Township home. (Credit: Cook County Sheriff’s Office)
BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. (STMW) – Attorneys for the young man accused of killing his Polish-born parents want a new judge to handle his case, as do the three friends accused of helping him commit the crime.
John Granat Jr., 17, of unincorporated Palos Township; Christopher Wyma, 17 of Bridgeview; Mohammed Salahat, 17, of Chicago Ridge; and Ehab Qasem, 19 of Hickory Hills are charged with the murder of Granat’s parents, John Granat Sr. and Maria Granat.
Prosecutors announced 75-count indictments against all four Thursday morning.
Joel Brodsky, attorney for Salahat, told Judge John J. Hynes he and the others planned to ask for their cases to be assigned to a new judge at the Cook County Circuit Courthouse in Bridgeview. State law allows defendants to request a new judge without giving any explanation.
Police found Granat Jr.’s parents dead in their bloody bedroom in the 12700 block of South 81st Court on Sept. 11 after their son called 911, prosecutors said.
Granat Jr. was charged within days in their murder after the Cook County sheriff said his alibi fell apart.
His friends, who split the thousands of dollars they found in the Granat home, kept going to school at Stagg High School in Palos Hills and Oak Lawn Community High School for about another month before they too were arrested and charged.
All four, who are being held in the Cook County Jail, return to court on Monday to learn who their new judge is.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2010. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
