Dec 10, 2014 2 min read

Deputy District Attorney Joseph Zupancic resigned from his position with the Washington County district attorney’s office.

Zupancic was suspended with pay following a hearing in which a Washington County judge ruled he knowingly withheld evidence from a robbery defendant’s attorney.

Common Pleas Judge John F. DiSalle ruled in September that Zupancic and the district attorney’s office engaged in prosecutorial misconduct after Zupancic testified he “forgot” to pass along letters written by his key witness to defendant Shayne Coffield’s attorney, Amanda Como, referencing exculpatory evidence.

Zupancic tried a robbery case against Coffield, 24, of Washington, in June in which Coffield and his co-defendant, Christopher M. Pitzarella, 24, of Washington, were accused of robbing the Uni-Mart on East Maiden Street in Washington in the early hours of March 27, 2013. Two clerks working at the time were injured. One was shot, and the other was assaulted. Pitzarella testified against Coffield, claiming Coffield shot the clerk. Coffield was acquitted after a two-day jury trial. Pitzarella pleaded guilty to robbery and was sentenced to 11 ½ to 23 months in jail.

District Attorney Gene Vittone previously declined to comment on Zupancic’s suspension, stating it was a personnel matter. He did not return calls or emails seeking comment about Zupancic’s Nov. 7 resignation.

According to 2014 Washington County salary records, Zupancic was listed as chief of litigation and made $74,263.05 a year.