Cops, Courts and Fire

Philly Judge Says Lawsuit Against Cosmo DiNardo’s Parents Can Continue


Philadelphia City Hall houses some courtrooms.
Credit: PA Internet News Service

A judge ruled last week that a civil lawsuit against the parents of killer Cosmo DiNardo can continue.

Philadelphia Judge Shelly Robins-New issued a one-page order last week that one of the civil lawsuits against DiNardo’s parents can move forward after Antonio and Sandra DiNardo’s attorney filed a motion to dismiss a parental-liability claim that alleges they bear some fault for the 2017 killing spree engineered by their son at the family farm in Solebury Township. 

DiNardo was sentenced to four life terms in prison for the July 2017 murders of Dean Finocchiaro, 19, of Middletown, Thomas Meo, 21, of Plumstead Township, and Mark Sturgis, 22, of Pennsburg, Montgomery County. The three men’s bodies were later burned and buried in a 14-foot-deep pit next to a cornfield on the farm. DiNardo’s cousin, Sean Kratz, was sentenced to life in prison for his involvement in the three men’s deaths.

Attorney Carin A. O’Donnell, who represents Patrick’s grandparents, holds the position that the DiNardos, of Bensalem, should face claims that they “failed in their lawful duty to protect others from possible harm at the hands of their violent, mentally ill son.”

Civil lawsuits against the DiNardos by the victims’ families were filed in 2018.


About the author

Tom Sofield

Tom Sofield has covered news in Bucks County for 12 years for both newspaper and online publications. Tom’s reporting has appeared locally, nationally, and internationally across several mediums. He is proud to report on news in the county where he lives and to have created a reliable publication that the community deserves.