Murderpedia has thousands of hours of work behind it. To keep creating
new content, we kindly appreciate any donation you can give to help
the Murderpedia project stay alive. We have many
plans and enthusiasm
to keep expanding and making Murderpedia a better site, but we really
need your help for this. Thank you very much in advance.
Born October 23,
1968. Chester was convicted and sentenced to death for kidnapping,
conspiracy, half a dozen other related offenses, and the first degree
murder of Anthony Milano, a gay man, on December 15, 1987.
Along with a
friend, Richard Laird, Chester met Milano at a bar (non-gay specific) in
Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Laird was heard yelling, “I hate fucking
faggots” during the evening. All three left the bar together and Milano
was murdered a few hours later.
Chester denies
taking part in beating Milano and fatally slashing his throat. Chester
is on death row at Graterford Prison in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
Frank Chester
In July 1989,
Chester and his codefendant, Richard Laird, were sentenced to death
for the first-degree murder of 26-year-old Anthony Milano.
During the evening of
December 14, 1987, Anthony Milano went to his father’s home to advise
his father that he intended to go out for the evening. Anthony left his
father’s residence at approximately 11:15 p.m. in a 1976 Chevrolet Nova
registered his mother's name.
Anthony proceeded to
the Edgely Inn, where Frank Chester and Richard Laird also happened to
be on that occasion. Chester and Laird had been in the tavern for quite
some time prior to the arrival of Anthony. Both had exhibited
quarrelsome and aggressive behavior before Anthony arrived at the Inn.
Chester, who possessed
skills in the art of Karate, had threatened to assault one of the male
guests at the establishment and Laird was loud and argumentative that
evening in the premises. Anthony arrived at the Inn sometime after 11:15
p.m. and left shortly after closing time, accompanied by Chester and
Laird.
The three men were last
observed in the Nova with Milano driving and Laird supplying directions
as to their destination. There was also testimony that during the time
that the three men were in the tavern Chester and Laird at one point
were taunting Milano as to his masculinity.
On the evening of
December 15, police responded to a report of a car fire. The vehicle
involved was a Chevrolet Nova. A search of the wooded area adjacent to
where the automobile was parked resulted in the discovery of the body of
Anthony Milano.
The body was lying face
up with the left eye partially open, contusions in the facial area, and
multiple “slashings” on the neck and throat. A postmortem examination
revealed that the victim had been assaulted about the face and had
sustained lacerations about the face, throat, neck and shoulder.
The pathologist
concluded that Anthony had been kicked and/or punched in both the right
and left temple areas and the chin. A hairline fracture at the base of
the skull was attributed to a blunt instrument striking the head. The
lacerations were made by a sharp instrument, consistent with a utility
knife.
The pathologist opined
that the “slashings” were hard enough and deep enough to sever the fifth
and sixth vertebrae and were too numerous to count. It was also
concluded that the victim aspirated on his own blood for five to ten
minutes before expiring.
A police officer
testified that when he arrived at the scene he first observed the
vehicle ablaze and assisted in extinguishing the fire. The vehicle was
identified as being the 1976 Chevrolet Nova registered in the name of
the mother of the deceased.
Police records further
established that Anthony's mother had reported the deceased as a
“missing person” when he failed to return to the family home in the
early morning hours of December 15, 1987.
This officer further
testified that prior to the response to the car fire, at approximately
1:30 a.m. on December 15, he had responded, with two fellow officers, to
a reported stolen car which was found in a parking lot of the Edgely Inn.
To pursue their investigation they began interrogating the customers in
the Edgely Inn.
During that
investigation he observed Chester, Laird, and Anthony Milano at the bar.
The time was fixed at approximately 1:30 a.m., December 15. He requested
identification from each of these individuals and was satisfied that
they were not involved in the car theft.
At approximately 2:10
a.m., while he was still in the parking lot, he observed Anthony,
Chester, and Laird leave the Inn together. This testimony was confirmed
by the other two officers that responded to the stolen car complaint.
The fire marshal for the township testified that in his opinion the fire
which involved the Milano vehicle was deliberately and intentionally
ignited.
In addition, the
Commonwealth presented evidence to establish that at approximately 4:00
a.m., December 15, Chester and Laird approached on foot, the apartment
of a friend of Chester’s. The apartment was located less than a mile
from the murder scene. The friend testified that both were visibly
agitated and were covered with blood.
Chester attempted to
explain their condition by stating that they had been engaged in a fight
and “the dude is dead.” The friend took both men to Laird’s apartment
where they attempted to remove and conceal their bloody clothing.
Prosecutors also produced additional witnesses to whom Chester and Laird
made incriminatory statements and actions that reflected their
complicity in the murder.
The Commonwealth also
produced a transcription of a consensually intercepted telephone call
between Chester and Laird, during which Laird suggested that Chester
leave town, recommended ways Chester could pass a polygraph examination,
and commented on the Commonwealth’s inability to prove a case without
evidence. Both defendants testified at trial and admitted being at the
scene.
Until Justice is Served
The Frank Chester
Story
KMF.org
Just outside of
Philadelphia lies a very small place that has just one sign on the
highway to advertise its existence: Tullytown, Pennsylvania. Drive too
fast on Route 13 and you'll miss this place for it is made up of just a
few small streets, several traffic lights and it hardly seems like the
kind of place where crimes like murder would ever be committed.
But if you stay in
Tullytown long enough, someone will mention the story of Anthony Milano,
Rick Laird, and Frank Chester. It began almost nine years ago on
December 14, 1987. And as of today, the story is far from over. On that
night, one man was murdered, one man became a murderer, and another man
is sitting on Death Row for a crime he did not commit. Until justice is
served, this story will never be over.
"How did I get here
when all I did was try to help the police?" is a question Frank asks
himself every day.
In 1987, he and a
friend, Rick Laird, were out at a local bar when they met Anthony
Milano. Anthony and Frank found they had a lot in common. They were both
Italian, both raised Catholic, and both were on the verge of getting
their lives together and facing their futures as adults. But all that
was to end when Rick, Frank, and Anthony left the bar.
While on the way to a
friend's house, Rick, so drunk and strung out on drugs at the time, lost
his temper when Anthony wanted to go home. In a fit of rage, Rick Laird
dragged Anthony to a nearby wooded area and knifed Anthony in the throat.
In a matter of moments, Anthony was dead.. Frank Chester saw the murder
as it was happening and ran through the woods to a friend's house,
shaken by what he had just seen.
After the murder, Frank
cooperated with the police. He produced the clothes he was wearing at
the time (which had not one drop of Anthony's blood on them), gave the
police the names of all his friends and the patrons in the bar. He even
submitted to a lie detector test which he passed with flying colors. He
also agreed to be wire-tapped in a phone conversation with Rick Laird in
order to help the police implicate Rick Laird for the murder.
But a District Attorney
with an election year ahead of him used all the work that Frank did
against him and now Frank finds himself on Death Row facing his final
appeal shortly before his execution.
Anthony Milano was a
gay man who was learning to accept his identity. When the DA learned
this fact, he used Anthony's homosexuality as the cause for his horrible
death. Frank and Rick were depicted as hate mongers. That's when the
media circus began.
The case received much
publicity. The press portrayed both Frank and Rick as evil-gay bashers
and the trial quickly bolted into national headlines. Both Frank and
Rick were offered up as sacrificial lambs, while Frank remained
steadfast in his innocence. Sometimes when we try to cooperate with
justice, it still does not prevail and Frank is living proof of that.
When you look at the
evidence, the police reports, and the subsequent transcripts, the
evidence clearly indicates that only one man, Rick Laird could have
committed this crime. Blood was found in his apartment, a pack of
cigarettes that Rick smoked was found under the body, and Rick had a
previous arrest history for violent behavior. All of these were signs
that Rick Laird was an accident waiting to happen.
Unfortunately, the DA
in this case used every ounce of evidence Frank supplied against him,
even the wire-tapped phone conversation was used as a way to convince
the jury Frank had done the crime. Dates were forged on reports and
witnesses were coerced by the DA in order to put both Frank and Rick
behind bars and on Death Row. Recently Rick Laird has tried to have his
sentenced reduced, indicating that because he was so strung out on drugs
and alcohol, that he had no way of knowing what he was doing that
fateful night. Because of this, Rick has somewhat exonerated Frank but
Frank still is on Death Row.
However, time is
running out and something must be done now! Frank is also the victim of
Celiac Disease, a degenerative condition which slowly erodes the body
within. If prison does not kill him, his disease certainly will unless
he is provided with the needed treatment to help save his life. This
will happen only if Frank has a lawyer who will truly work in his best
interests to bring all of the facts regarding the crime to light.
In 1987, Frank lost his
family, his fiancé, his beloved car collection, and most importantly,
his entire life. In the years he has been in prison, Frank has studied
law and has used his abilities to help others in need. He has become, to
the guards, a model prisoner, having never committed a violent act or
done drugs in prison. He prays every day that his legal acumen will help
to release him from the bonds of prison so he can go back to his life
and be with his family. He is a living example that justice does not
always prevail.
