Westmoreland jury returns split verdict against man charged in incidents near school, police station

Jurors delivered a split verdict this week in two cases against a former Westmoreland County man who was charged in connection with November 2019 incidents outside a Derry Area School District elementary school and at the Kiski Valley state police station.

Justin Juan De La Cruz Martinez, 42, of Illinois, was convicted of two misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct, according to court filings. He was found not guilty of defiant trespass and resisting arrest.

“With regard to Commonwealth v. Martinez, we respect the jury’s verdict and thank them for their service,” District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli said when asked for a response to the verdict.

The trial started last week, and testimony and closing arguments continued late into Friday night. The jury began deliberating Monday morning and returned a verdict after about four hours. Martinez represented himself, and he testified on his own behalf for nearly seven hours on Friday.

“The jury seem confused and not able to understand my rights with respect to and in compliance with the law,” Martinez said via email in response to a request for comment. “It’s hard to present a defense to a jury when the district attorney’s office keeps objecting to the facts of the cases and the court keeps allowing them to be sustained.”

The charges stemmed from separate incidents. In one case, police said Martinez refused to comply with orders to move from in front of the school while wearing a mask to advocate against bullying, according to court papers. A second set of charges stemmed from an incident the same month at the state police station, where Martinez went to make a complaint against a trooper.

He was found guilty of an additional summary disorderly conduct count by Judge Christopher Feliciani.

“The people of Pennsylvania have spoken,” Martinez said in the email. “I will respect their decision. Respectfully, I will pursue my happiness elsewhere.”

Martinez still has one case pending in court. He was charged last year with illegally recording a court employee. According to the court docket, he is charged with three felony offenses in connection with allegations that he violated the state’s wiretapping laws. The trial is tentatively scheduled to begin Oct. 17.