Robert McGranahan went to Edward Demko Jr.'s Sayreville home in March 2013 after they met on a gay dating site. The date soon turned violent when authorities say McGranahan stabbed Demko to death.
NEW BRUNSWICK -- The photos of Edward Demko Jr.'s lifeless body on the floor covered in blood brought his brother and other family members to tears Tuesday afternoon inside a Middlesex County courtroom.
The images didn't just flash on the projection screen once or twice. They stayed up there, for minutes on end, as Assistant Prosecutor R. Scott LaMountain presented the State's final argument in the murder trial of Old Bridge resident Robert McGranahan.
Authorities say McGranahan, then 26, met Demko, 65, on a gay dating website, went to Demko's Sayreville home, had a sexual encounter and then stabbed him multiple times one early morning in March 2013.
Demko stands accused of murder but his attorney, Michael Policastro, contends McGranahan acted in self-defense.
"It was a simple trial," Policastro said in his closing arguments. "It had to do with self-defense. (It's) about Mr. Demko hitting my client and then coming after him with a knife. ... The real issue is who hit who first."
LaMountain said it's clear who attacked first. McGranahan had a wound above his eye and scratch marks on his back, but LaMountain said that's nothing compared to Demko's nearly two-dozen injuries from the attack, including a stab wound to the back and chest.
"The only person with injuries from an altercation in this case is the guy who is dead on the floor," LaMountain said.
There's no explanation as to why McGranahan stabbed Demko, LaMountain conceded. Policastro argues that Demko made a sexual advance on McGranahan and when he refused, Demko attacked him.
LaMountain said that argument "just doesn't make any sense."
He said the evidence shows that the two had a sexual encounter in Demko's bedroom of his townhouse. Demko left that encounter satisfied, LaMountain said, and then the two went back downstairs to finish watching a television show and have a couple more alcoholic drinks.
"Why would he come at him with a knife?" LaMountain questioned. "For sex? He just finished five minutes ago."
Still, there's no evidence or testimony explaining who pulled the knife first, Policastro argued. McGranahan also didn't take any time to clean up the scene, he left items of clothing in the home and left the front door open and lights on when he exited the home.
"There is no evidence in this case at all of Mr. McGranahan trying to cover his tracks," Policastro said. "That's what guilty people do."
LaMountain said guilty people don't call the police right away -- and that's what McGranahan did.
As the prosecutor gave his closing arguments, McGranahan sat stoically. He glanced over at his attorney occasionally and shook his head in disbelief when LaMountain talked of how blood splattered on the wall when McGranahan stabbed Demko.
Meanwhile, Demko's family, several of whom wore green in honor of his favorite color, held each other tight and wiped back tears. Family members declined to comment after the hearing.
Near the end of his final arguments, LaMountain projected a Facebook post on the screen to show the jury. It was a quote McGranahan posted from himself, saying: "Ending another person's life is not a choice. It is a prerequisite to feel alive. There is no second option."
Policastro said the quote was posted six years before the incident and was intended to draw people to McGranahan's author page. McGranahan was an aspiring writer and wanted to generate interest in his books, he said.
LaMountain offered a different explanation for the quote, saying: "It's his favorite quote and he attributes it to himself."
Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.