Judge to announce Wone verdict
By: Emily Babay
Examiner Staff Writer
June 29, 2010
In the nearly four years since Robert Wone was killed, little information has been revealed about the night he died.
Tuesday, one piece of the puzzle will get an answer: Did Joseph Price, Dylan Ward and Victor Zaborsky conspire to cover up the slaying?
D.C. Superior Court Judge Lynn Leibovitz is set to rule Tuesday in the trial of the three men, accused of cleaning up the crime scene and misdirecting police after Wone's Aug. 2, 2006, death in their Dupont Circle town house.
Wone was spending the night in their home at 1509 Swann St. NW when he was stabbed three times in the chest. The defendants maintain that an intruder killed Wone.
Leibovitz has heard five weeks of testimony from dozens of witnesses. The defendants waived their right to a jury trial, making Leibovitz the sole arbitrator.
All three men face charges of conspiracy and obstruction of justice. Ward, 40, and Zaborsky, 44, were acquitted of tampering with evidence, but that charge still stands against Price, 39. All three could face more than 30 years in prison if convicted.
Leibovitz is considering the evidence against each defendant separately, as if each had his own trial. She could find all, some or none of the defendants guilty.
The trial has garnered widespread attention and an overflow courtroom has often been set up to let more people watch the proceedings.
But some lawyers who have been following the case say it's hard to predict Tuesday's verdict.
Chris Leibig, an Arlington lawyer, said prosecutors have presented "a set of extremely suspicious circumstances," but that doesn't necessarily prove their case.
"What they don't have is a confession," he said. "They don't have an eyewitness that can disprove any major portion of the defense theory."
