West Chester, Pa. – A defense attorney asked a judge to bar any references to his client’s nickname in his upcoming murder trial, saying jurors might think someone called Scuz is, well, scuzzy.
Demetrius “Scuz” Fiorentino, 31, is charged with the April 2004 shooting death of Joel “Wellz” Taylor, 19, during a botched drug deal in a Coatesville crack house.
In his request Friday to Common Pleas Judge Phyllis Streitel, defense attorney Laurence Harmelin cited the dictionary definition of scuzzball as “an unpleasant, dirty or dangerous person; creep” and scuzzy as “dirty, shabby or foul in condition or nature.”
But Assistant District Attorney Lorraine Finnegan said it would be nearly impossible for witnesses to identify the defendant without using his nickname.
“All of these witnesses are going to have to call him by the name they know,” she said. “We’re not calling him a scuzzball or scuzzy. … It’s ‘Scuz’ because that is his nickname.”
Harmelin also asked to have the trial moved out of Chester County, citing publicity surrounding the case. Finnegan wants the trial to stay in the county.
The judge did not immediately rule on the requests. Jury selection in Fiorentino’s capital murder trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 19.
