LOCKPORT, N.Y. — A cold case trial, which has been 27 years in the making, is now formally underway in Niagara County Court in Lockport.
Joseph Belstadt, 44, is accused in the September 1993 killing of Mandy Steingasser, whose body was found in Bond Lake Park several weeks after she was last seen getting into Belstadt’s car in North Tonawanda.
Belstadt was in court on Monday as formal jury selection got underway for the trial. He has been free on $250,000 bail since he was charged back in April 2018.
Investigators had suspected him of being involved in Steingasser's death for many years, but it took the re-examination of forensic evidence with more modern techniques to bring him to trial.
There has been plenty of pre-trial jousting by prosecutors and the defense attorneys, which lead to delays in this trial. That includes the defense strategy of arguing that another man, Steingasser's boyfriend at the time, may have been the actual killer because his DNA was found on her clothing.
Prosecutors counter that the boyfriend was five states away from Western New York at the time of the slaying.
Judge Sara Sheldon said on Monday that up to 100 witnesses may testify in the case which could last for six weeks. Over 200 potential jurors were pre-screened as court officials and attorneys are seeking an impartial jury in the highly publicized case.
A heavy media presence is expected when testimony begins. Judge Sheldon has already granted permission for a crew from the NBC Dateline program to record portions of the trial for an upcoming segment.