Kathryn Knott Trial Begins Today
Jury selection for the trial for Kathryn Knott, the now lone defendant in the Center City gay-bashing case from 2014, begins today after a series of pre-trial hearings.
According to court documents, Knott’s trial will take place in courtroom 304 in Philadelphia’s Criminal Justice Center at 1301 Filbert Street. She’s facing a number of charges — including aggravated assault, conspiracy, and recklessly endangering another person, among others — in the September 2014 attack against two gay men in Center City. Knott is being represented by defense attorney Louis Busico, while the Commonwealth has appointed Assistant District Attorney Mike Barry as the prosecutor.
The last time Knott was in court was November 24th when Judge Roxanne Covington heard motions brought forth by prosecutors and the defense as to whether or not Knott’s social media posts could be used as evidence against her during her trial. Covington ruled that past homophobic Tweets sent by Knott could be used as per rule 404(b). However, prosecutors cannot use previous racial and alcohol-related Tweets in the trial.
On October 15th, two of the other defendants in the gay-bashing case took plea bargains: Kevin Harrigan pleaded to one count each of simple assault and conspiracy. Philip Williams pleaded guilty to one count each of conspiracy and aggravated assault. According to our previous reporting, Caryn Kunkle, who has become something of a spokesperson for the victims, has proclaimed on numerous occasions that the victims offered plea deals “in an effort to kickstart some mercy and education between these diverse communities by setting a peaceful precedent.”
