The defendant in a case involving the stabbing death of a Kennedy Township man last fall along the Montour Trail has been declared competent to stand trial after receiving treatment at a state hospital.
The defendant, who was known as Anthony Quesen when arrested last October but now identifies as a woman, had been in custody since her arrest the day after the stabbing occurred on Oct. 21, 2024.
Quesen was declared incompetent to stand trial after her arrest and moved to Torrance State Hospital, a public psychiatric hospital 50 miles east of Pittsburgh, for treatment. An Allegheny County Common Pleas Court judge on Thursday declared that Quesen’s competency had been restored.
A spokesperson for the district attorney’s office said it’s not unusual for a defendant in a criminal case who has been declared incompetent to stand trial to receive treatment at a state psychiatric hospital until that person is determined to be competent and fit for trial.
Quesen was scheduled to appear in Pittsburgh Municipal Court Friday, July 11, for a hearing to determine if there is sufficient evidence to hold her for trial in connection with the death of Benjamin Brallier.
But that hearing was continued at the request of Quesen’s attorney, and Quesen was ordered to return to court Oct. 31 for the hearing.
Quesen is charged with one count of criminal homicide. Friday marked the fifth continuance in the case; Quesen’s preliminary hearing date originally was scheduled for Nov. 1, 2024. Prior to this week, the most recent previous continuance was granted April 25.
The 44-year-old Brallier was a Pennsylvania State Liquor Control Enforcement agent who was working as a recruiting officer at the time of his death.
Moon Township police who were dispatched to the Montour Trail on the afternoon of Oct. 21, 2024, for a medical call found that Brallier had sustained wounds that were consistent with some sort of an attack, according to court documents.
Brallier was transported to Heritage Valley Sewickley Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Authorities found Quesen later that same day less than a half-mile from the crime scene, having sustained cuts to his hands that required medical treatment. Quesen was taken to Heritage Valley Sewickley Hospital and was arrested on a charge of criminal homicide the following day.
A county jail spokesman said that Quesen was in custody Friday but would not provide any additional information regarding his location.
Be First to Comment