NORRISTOWN, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — Jurors in a Montgomery County murder trial heard on Wednesday from witnesses who say they saw 70-year-old Renee DiPietro stab a man in the chest with a sword hidden in her cane — including that woman’s son.
DiPietro is charged with third-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in connection with the incident. Her lawyer Lou Busico argues she’s not guilty of either, as she had a right to defend herself and her son.
Her son Jason told jurors that around 12:45 a.m. on June 10, he called his 70-year-old mother after getting kicked out of an Ardmore bar for throwing a punch. That punch, he said, came after he saw his girlfriend kissing another man.
Jason testified he left the bar without a struggle, thinking everything had calmed down. But about 45 minutes later, as he was getting in the backseat of his parents’ car on Cricket Avenue, he said 31-year-old Michael Sides grabbed him from behind and started hitting him.
DiPietro jumped from the front passenger seat, ran around the car and began hitting Sides with her cane. According to prosecutors, the sheath covering the 16-inch blade came off, and she stabbed Sides in the chest, piercing his heart.
31-year-old Michael Sides was killed. Witnesses say he was a friend of the man who was punched, though he wasn’t in the bar when the punch was thrown.
Closing arguments are set for Thursday morning.