Witness testifies in double slaying By Malinda Masing A friend of four former Marines has testified that one had confessed to a double slaying of a Winchester couple. "They had them kneel over the couch and they placed a seat cushion over his head and shot him," Justin Weissinger testified. "They shot his wife too." His testimony came Wednesday, marking the third day of a preliminary hearing. Defendants Tyrone Miller, 21; Kevin Cox, 21; Emrys Justin John, 19, and 22-year-old Kesaun Sykes are all facing the death penalty if convicted on charges including sexual assault, robbery and first-degree murder in the deaths of Sgt. Jan Pietrzak and his wife, Quiana Jenkins-Pietrzak. Weissinger, 22, came into the Southwest Justice Center courtroom dressed in jail garb and supporting himself on crutches. He said he became friends with Miller through the Marines and estimates they burglarized 20 houses in San Diego County. A month before the Pietrzaks were killed, three of the four defendants committed a home burglary in Oceanside, according to Weissinger. All but John was with them, according to court testimony by Melissa Buck, Cox's girlfriend. Days after the killings, Weissinger went to work at Camp Pendleton, where he asked Miller what happened, Weissinger testified. Miller handed John the gun and told John "to do them." John confirmed that he had done the shooting, Weissinger testified. Before the shooting, the four arrived at the Winchester home, where Sgt. Pietrzak came to the door holding a kitchen knife, Weissinger said. He testified that one of the men put a gun to Pietrzaks' chest, and Pietrzak dropped the knife. He was instructed to go into the living room. Jenkins-Pietrzak was on the staircase and she too was instructed to the living room, and both were told to lie on the floor. The men then searched the house, but found few valuables, and Miller was surprised at this because Pietrzak often bragged about his property while at work, Weissinger said. They then proceeded to beat Pietrzak. Miller told Weissinger they never hit Jenkins-Pietrzak, but sexually assaulted her using unspecified objects, Weissinger testified. Sgt. Pietrzak and Quiana Jenkins-Pietrzak were each shot twice in the head, Weissinger said. Before leaving, the men tried burning down the Pietrzak's house, but failed, Weissinger testified. In previous investigations about the killings, Weissinger never shared this version of events. "I think that their families deserve to hear the truth," Weissinger testified, "and I feel that they need to be punished for what they did." Miller's defense attorney, Jeff Zimel, asked Weissinger if he had testified now because he needed help with his legal problems. Weissinger responded that he did not have ulterior motives for testifying now. Weissinger had recently been arrested and charged with residential burglary in San Diego County. If convicted, he could go to prison. The other defense attorneys will have a chance to cross-examine Weissinger when the preliminary hearing resumes June 30. • • • Vox is the newspaper of the 2009 CCNMA-San Diego Multicultural Journalism Workshop. Return to index | See also: Vox on Blogspot