PA PA - Ray Gricar, 59, former district attorney, Bellefonte, 15 Apr 2005 - #17

[Daisy1980]

New Final Argument podcast: Final Argument: The Disappearance of Ray Gricar, District Attorney

Two glaring errors up front.

1. A governor cannot call a grand jury.
2. The PA governor serves as a non-voting member of the PSU Board.

Listening now. Don’t recall him telling PF he would see her later on the phone call…

 

[formerjerseygirl]

I just listened to the podcast.Am looking forward to hearing from those of you who follow this case so diligently. Is the information she revealed a bombshell? Has it changed any ones theories ?

 

[J. J. in Phila]

Listening now. Don’t recall him telling PF he would see her later on the phone call…

He didn't.

 

[J. J. in Phila]

I just listened to the podcast.Am looking forward to hearing from those of you who follow this case so diligently. Is the information she revealed a bombshell? Has it changed any ones theories ?

A few things that were opposite bombshells. Corbett, then AG, approved a plan to let other DA Offices help out.

She is trying to link in Jake Corman, the State Senator from Centre County. Corman was on the TSM board and is a PSU alum. That does not tie into Gricar.

BTW: I will be unavailable much of this week.

 

[DeeperSecrets]

Hilarious that she uses Castor as a trusted source. A conspiracy minded person might wonder if Knight's podcast itself is a red herring.

 

[Black Diamond]

Well now we can wait 6 months for her next one hour podcast to come out.

Im probably gonna give it a second listen before posting any comments about it.

 

[J. J. in Phila]

RK corrected the record to note that the governor cannot call a grand jury. The Attorney General of PA could.

Here is a list of the people holding the AG post. Those that served as acting AG's are labeled as (A):

Tom Corbett 1/18/05-1/18/11
William Ryan (A) 1/8/11-5/27/11
Linda Kelly 5/27/11-1/15/13
Kathleen Kane 1/15/13-8/17/16
Bruce Castor (A) 8/17/16-8/31/16
Bruce Beemer 8/31/16-1/17/17
John Shapiro 1/17/17-present

Some were seeking never higher office (Ryan, Kelly, and arguably Beemer), while the rest were political. None of them called a grand jury.

The Centre County DA also could call a grand jury. These were:
Mark Smith (A) 4/05-1/06
Michael Madeira 1/06-1/10
Stacy Parks Miller 1/10/1-18
Bernard Cantorni 1/18-present

Now, because of the circumstances, I give the acting ones a bit of a pass. They may not have wanted to tie the hands of their successors. You have to ask why these others did not do so. You have to ask that in light of the PSP recommending a grand jury, Buehner recommending a grand jury, and me, one of the most public critics, all saying to have a grand jury.

That answer is telling.

 

[J. J. in Phila]

I said that the answer is telling, so let me give several reasons why all of these people could act this way regarding a grand jury:

1. They are convinced that RFG's disappearance is voluntary (walkaway or suicide).

The circumstantial evidence, an unknown and untraceable bank account, the computer searches, the possibility of a burner phone, RFG's behavior, the Mel Wiley interest, 2020 Vision, all point to something voluntary. The missing major piece for walkaway is how RFG got out of Lewisburg.

2. They found out some extreme criminal wrongdoing on RFG's part, and they know that it would come out. It would have to be something criminal, not just something embarrassing. It is much more likely to be something with a long statute of limitations.

3. A combination of one and two.

 

[J. J. in Phila]

Hilarious that she uses Castor as a trusted source. A conspiracy minded person might wonder if Knight's podcast itself is a red herring.

Well, I would not say that in this case.

Castor claimed that he had talked to Smith about basically lending out detectives in 2005 to help with the investigation. Smith said that he did not recall it.

When the Sandusky case broke in 2011, Smith said in the press that did not recall the 1998 incident. When investigated by H. Geoffrey Moulton, for the AG's Office, Smith told investigators that he had told Madeira when the 2009 complaint was made (pp. 39-40). Madeira said that he does not remember that.

I am not convinced that Smith's memory is all that good. I believe Castor when he said that the offer was made.

That said, I see no way to put political pressure on Smith. He could have run for DA in 2005, and won handily; he was the logical choice as RFG's deputy. Likewise, he did not know if whomever would win would retain him in the position, no matter what he did. He did not know for sure who the next DA would be.

That is why I am not seeing political pressure as being a motive not to appoint a grand jury. Appointing one would have gotten the press, the chattering class (of which of I am part), and people like Buehner, off the backs of LE and the elected officials.

The one thing I can see is that they don't want RFG to "look bad." It becomes a legacy protection issue. I am going in the direction that legacy protection may be the reason.