Oechsle

HOLLIDAYSBURG — A Blair County judge denied a motion to consolidate four cases against the city man awaiting trial for his alleged role in the April 2023 stabbing death of 38-year-old Christopher Helsel, potentially setting the stage for three jury trials.

Raymond Thomas Oechsle Jr., 54, has seven active cases against him, four of which were the subject of Monday’s consolidation hearing. Those include a 2025 case of alleged institutional vandalism, two 2024 cases alleging Oechsle procured a weapon for himself and a 2023 case of attempted criminal homicide.

Blair County District Attorney Pete Weeks filed a motion to consolidate the four cases on Feb. 20. He also requested the 2023 attempted homicide case be joined with the homicide case involving Helsel.

During the hearing, Weeks argued for the joinder by telling President Judge Wade A. Kagarise that the alleged offenses across four of the cases occurred at the same location, occurred within a relatively short amount of time and would require the testimony for some of the same witnesses. He said joining the homicide and attempted homicide cases was also necessary because the potential jury would be “required to know” the reason for Oechsle’s imprisonment as it is a “key element” in the other four cases.

“It’s logical and appropriate to try them together,” Weeks said.

When asked by Kagarise which case would be tried first if the consolidation motion was denied, Weeks said the attempted homicide case because it involves two other inmates, occurred first in time in regards to the other three cases and contains the most serious charges outside the homicide case.

Oechsle appeared in court alongside defense attorneys Robert Donaldson and Thomas Dickey, who argued against the consolidation.

Dickey provided Kagarise with case law stating that, in order to join cases together, the defendant had to be thinking of committing the other crimes at the time of committing the first crime. He said that the alleged crimes occurring at the same location, with the same witnesses and police department was inconsequential.

“None of that matters,” Dickey said.

He added this would also prevent any of Oechsle’s prison cases from being joined with his homicide case.

Donaldson argued that three of the four cases Weeks was asking to be joined “did not involve any other human victims” so they should actually be severed from the attempted homicide case.

He told Kagarise that if the attempted homicide case were to be tried separately, he “would be ready to proceed in short order.”

In deciding to deny Weeks’ motion, Kagarise said that “based on existing precedent,” he believed the attempted homicide case should be tried separately from the three other prison cases.

Kagarise said the attempted homicide case was the only one of the four that alleged assault and would therefore potentially prejudice the jury in deciding the other three cases. He deferred his decision in joining the three other prison cases, which he said would be held in abeyance, or temporary inactivity, pending the outcome of the homicide and attempted homicide trials.

Kagarise also declined to join the attempted homicide and homicide cases, saying he “does not believe it would be appropriate to proceed with both” at the same time. This ruling will effectively set up Oechsle for three separate jury trials.

Kagarise then scheduled Oechsle for jury selection on April 20 in the attempted homicide case and said he expected the ensuing trial to last for three days.

Before closing out the hearing, Kagarise asked Weeks if a potential plea had been offered to the defense in the attempted homicide case, to which Weeks said no. Weeks told Kagarise he was prepared to offer Oechsle a sentence of 10 to 20 years’ incarceration, but the offer would expire at jury selection.

Mirror Staff Writer Rachel Foor-Musselman is at 814-946-7458.