Defendants in Granat Murders Seeking Separate Trials

Three defendants in a brutal Palos Township double murder are seeking separate trials.

Attorneys for filed motions requesting separation during a court appearance Friday. The public defender representing another of the accused, John Granat, 18, has yet to file but intends to soon.

The three men are charged with murder along with 18-year-old Mohammad Salahat of Chicago Ridge. They are accused of beating and stabbing Granat's parents to death while they slept in their bedroom.

Salahat, who is represented by former Drew Peterson attorney Joel Brodsky, already was heading toward his own trial. Chicago attorney Mohammad Ramadan joined Brodsky in Salahat's defense earlier this week.

Prosecutors say Salahat was the getaway driver and got $4,000 after the murder, which he used on a shopping spree. Brodsky claims his client had no idea what was happening inside the house.

Public defenders for Granat and Wayma joined the case late and working through stacks of files and evidence collected during the investigation.

Granat, Wyma and Qasem are due back in court March 8. Salahat will appear again before a judge Feb. 25.