Jailed Jeannette woman tells judge to do 'whatever you want'

A Jeannette woman accused of using weapons of mass destruction that caused injuries to water authority crews at her home will remain in jail pending the outcome of her trial.

Deborah Samulski, 62, had been in jail since last week following her conviction on charges of making false reports to police and a local gas company as part of a plot to remove tenants from her home. The verdict came several hours after Samulski challenged the jury to convict her during her rambling testimony in which she attempted to defend her actions leading up to her arrest in May 2020.

Samulski was again defiant during a brief hearing Wednesday before Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Tim Krieger in which she appeared by video from the county jail.

“You do whatever you want,” Samulski said. “God bless America.”

Police claim that in January, Samulski blocked access to water lines at her house and poured sulfuric acid drain cleaner into the pipes, injuring three Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County workers as they attempted to restore her service, which had been shut off in November.

In addition to two felony counts of unlawful possession or manufacturing of weapons of mass destruction, she was charged with risking catastrophe, reckless endangerment and criminal mischief.

The judge last week ordered Samulski to remain in jail until she is sentenced in about three months in her false reports case.

Samulski had been free on bail until the second day of her trial last week, when she failed to appear in court and was picked up by sheriff’s deputies on a bench warrant.

The judge ordered her to undergo a psychological evaluation.

In addition to the weapons of mass destruction case, Samulski has four other cases pending in which she faces charges of harassment, disorderly conduct and institutional vandalism of an educational facility.