Lawyer for teen in Grandzol slaying no longer seeking to move case to juvenile court

The defense lawyer for a teen accused with his older brother of fatally shooting Spring Garden activist Gerard Grandzol in front of his 2-year-old daughter last year has withdrawn her motion seeking to transfer the case to juvenile court, authorities said Monday.

Eileen Hurley, the court-appointed lawyer for accused gunman Marvin Roberts, said in a text message that she had no comment on the case. But Assistant District Attorney Joanne Pescatore confirmed that Hurley has withdrawn her request and that a hearing scheduled for Tuesday on whether Roberts' case should remain in adult court has been canceled.

Instead, lawyers will appear in court Tuesday to determine the next steps in the two defendants' cases, Pescatore said. Roberts was 16 when he allegedly confronted and shot Grandzol during a robbery outside the victim's home on the 1500 block of Melon Street.

Roberts, 17, of Tioga, and his brother, Maurice, 21, of Frankford, are charged with murder, robbery, conspiracy, gun offenses, and related charges.

Michael Medway, Maurice Roberts' lawyer, has acknowledged that a surveillance video showed his client on the block at the time of the shooting, but said that his client didn't intend for the victim to be shot. He has said that he is seeking a plea deal to third-degree murder for his client, hoping to avoid a possible life sentence that a first- or second-degree murder conviction would carry.

Both brothers remain in custody awaiting trial.

Grandzol was executive director at Special Counsel, a legal recruitment firm in Center City. He was active in Spring Garden and in his former Francisville neighborhood. And he was a beloved neighbor on his Spring Garden block, often leading kids' scooter and running races, and grilling hot dogs for block parties.

His wife, Kristin, said in a phone interview Monday that she was "really glad" that Marvin Roberts' attorney had withdrawn her request. "It was an adult crime and the shooter should be tried as an adult," she said.

She said she hopes both defendants spend the rest of their lives in jail.

The older brother, she said, was just as culpable in the shooting. "He carried the murder weapon," she said. "When Gerry took his wallet out, [Maurice Roberts] was the one who took it."

Grandzol was shot at about 8 p.m. on Sept. 7 after he and his daughter Violet returned with their sheepdog, Oscar, from Lemon Hill in Fairmount Park, where they had been playing Frisbee. He had parked his Audi SUV outside his home when the brothers confronted him, authorities said.

After the younger brother grabbed a 9mm pistol from Maurice's backpack, Grandzol willingly handed over his wallet, authorities said. But when Marvin Roberts demanded the keys to the SUV, Grandzol asked to get his daughter out of the back seat.

That's when Marvin Roberts said, "No," and fired two shots into Grandzol's face, killing him, authorities said.

The shooting shocked the city because it happened in a generally safe neighborhood, and because the alleged gunman apparently showed no remorse by shooting the victim in front of his toddler daughter.

Surveillance video from the SEPTA Broad Street Line subway platform appeared to show Marvin Roberts laughing afterward.

In March, Kristin Grandzol and her daughters, including Rose — who was 6 weeks old when her father was killed — moved to Chester County because they no longer felt safe living in the city.