Defense seeks verdict overturned in Plainfield Township hate crime murder case

Attorneys for a former Plainfield Township landlord convicted of the hate crime murder of a Muslim child want a judge to overturn the jury’s verdict by claiming he did not receive a fair trial and prosecutors made prejudicial statements against him.

The motion was filed on March 27 by George Lenard and Kylie Blatti, attorneys for Joseph Czuba, 73. He was convicted on Feb. 28 of the 2023 murder of 6-year-old Wadee Alfayoumi and the attempted murder of his mother, Hanan Shaheen.

Czuba was also found guilty of attacking the mother and child with a knife on the basis of their Islamic faith.

The jury determined the death of Wadee, who was stabbed 26 times, was the result of “exceptionally brutal or heinous behavior indicative of wanton cruelty.”

Czuba is scheduled to appear in Will County court on May 22 for a hearing on the defense motion and possibly his sentencing.

Lenard requests Will County Judge Amy Bertani-Tomczak grant Czuba a new trial if she is not willing to overturn the jury’s verdict.

Lenard argued in the motion that Czuba was not proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and the jury’s verdict is “contrary to the evidence.” He also argued Czuba did not receive a fair trial and he was denied due process.

Lenards said prosecutors made “prejudicial, inflammatory and erroneous statements” in closing arguments that were designed to “arouse the prejudices, passions and sympathies” of the jury, which prejudiced Czuba’s right to a fair trial.

“The verdict is the result of passion, bias and prejudice on the part of the jury against the defendant,” Lenard said.

The jury viewed a police squad vehicle video of Czuba where he compared Shaheen and Wadee to “infested rats.”

Lenard argued Bertani-Tomczak erred when she granted prosecutors’ request to admit Czuba’s statements from the squad video in the trial.

Shaheen has an ongoing wrongful death lawsuit case against Czuba, his ex-wife Mary Connor and a company associated with Czuba’s Plainfield Township residential property.