Tom Kolenda said his family struggled for two decades to move forward since the tragedy that became known as the “Bricelyn Street Fire.”
His nephew was one of three Pittsburgh firefighters who died in the East Hills house, set ablaze by the homeowner's son so they could collect the insurance money, a jury decided.
Soon Kolenda's family will be forced to relive what happened. A judge granted Gregory Brown another trial, likely early next year, based on a legal technicality.
“It's horrible,” Kolenda said. “We don't think he deserves it. We feel the kid was guilty when he was proven guilty. And now he's been given a new trial for whatever crazy reason.”
Marc Kolenda, 27, Patricia Conroy, 43, and Capt. Thomas Brooks, 42, died in the fire on Feb. 14, 1995, when they were trapped inside the home. Brown, now 38, is serving a life prison sentence for three counts of second-degree murder.
The evidence did not support the prosecutors' arguments, said Al Lindsay, his lawyer during the first trial. The insurance payout covered only a fraction of the value of the home and what was inside, he said, calling Brown's conviction a “horrible injustice.”
In February 2014, Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Joseph K. Williams granted Brown a new trial because jurors were not told that a prosecutor and a federal agent rewarded two key witnesses with thousands of dollars in exchange for their testimony.