SENECA – The lawyer for the man accused in the murder of a popular Seneca Catholic priest has asked the court to declare as inadmissible certain photos from the investigation, saying their graphic images could prejudice a jury which eventually may be empaneled in the case.
Gary Lee Hermesch, 57 of Tulsa, is scheduled for a June 17 preliminary hearing after a previous hearing April 15 was postponed. He’s accused in the April 3 murder of Father Arul Carasala near the rectory of the Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Seneca.
A probable cause affidavit in the case said a witness near the church saw Hermesch shoot Carasala three times while the priest in the yard of the church rectory. Hermesch then apparently drove to the Nemaha County Sheriff’s office and turned himself in to sheriff’s officers who were in the process of responding to the shooting call.
Court-appointed defense attorney Jason Belveal’s motion asked the court to declare the relevancy of any photos introduced as evidence prior to introducing them in court, and to be sensitive to the possible bias they might present to a jury.
“Gruesome photographs depicting the deceased, and the wounds of the deceased, can threaten
a defendant’s right to a fair trial like almost no other evidence,” Belveal’s motion read. “This type of photograph can both shock and repulse jurors, and encourage them to base their verdict on passion rather than reason.”
The probable cause affidavit noted Carasala was shot at least once in the head. He died after being taken to the Nemaha County Hospital.
Locals said Hermesch was raised in Seneca and graduated high school there in 1977. Reports as yet unconfirmed said Hermesch attended church services at Saints Peter and Paul the weekend prior to the shooting. He was said to have gone back to Oklahoma but returned this week prior to Thursday’s shooting.
Hermesch is being held in the Nemaha County Jail in lieu of $1 million bond.
Dane Hicks is a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism and the United States Marine Corps Officer Candidate School at Quantico, VA. He is the author of novels "The Skinning Tree" and "A Whisper For Help." As publisher of the Anderson County Review in Garnett, KS., he is a recipient of the Kansas Press Association's Boyd Community Service Award as well as more than 60 awards for excellence in news, editorial and photography.
