Bail Set for Stoneham man found with multiple explosives in his Main Street apartment
Published on July 12th, 2000
Stoneham, MA- Inside windowless courtroom 10b of the Middlesex Superior Court Daniel Deniso, released from Mass General a day before, waited to hear how much it would cost to get out of jail.
Judge Charles Grabau set bail at $250,000 surety or $25,000 cash bail at the July 7 arraignment. A pre-trial hearing is scheduled for July 17.
Deniso is charged with possession of an infernal machine; he had gunpowder in a PVC pipe with a fuse attached.
On June 13, Deniso, 39, was in his 62 Main Street apartment in Stoneham handling the explosive material when it ignited, blowing off his index finger and badly injuring his thumb.
Deniso was released from Mass General, where he was cared for as a ward of the state, and led directly to Middlesex County Jail in Cambridge. He made the short trip downstairs Friday for the arraignment.
"Essentially what you have is a guy who likes to make big cherry bombs," said Deniso's attorney, Thomas Hoopes of Boston.
"I don't understand the thinking behind the pipe casing," Judge Grabau said, responding to Hoopes' fireworks enthusiast argument.
Hoopes asked the judge to let Deniso return to his apartment or a motel with his wife Margaret. Margaret, Hoopes said, could look after Deniso's hand injury. The previous night in jail, the saline solution doctors had prescribed for use on the wound was not available.
"If not properly treated, he could lose his thumb," Hoopes said.
Hoopes acknowledged Den-iso's mental problems: depression and suicidal tendencies and his legal problems: an armed robbery conviction, a restraining order from his ex-wife, parole violations and defaults on warrants.
Hoopes said alcohol has lead to many of Deniso's problems, which Hoopes attempted to categorize as more pitiful than dangerous. The weapon in the armed robbery was an aerosol can. The restraining order from Deniso's ex-wife came right after he remarried. And several of the defaults on warrants occurred while Deniso was in prison.
Assistant D.A. Robert Delahunt disagreed, citing a Lynn police report in which Deniso allegedly threatened to blowup his ex-wife's car.
Delahunt added that Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms agents said the devices Deniso made were similar to traditional "pipe bombs." Delahunt referred to an ongoing dispute Deniso has with the Social Security Administration and a hearing which had been scheduled for two days after the explosion. Then, in the same breath, Delahunt said that the PVC-encased explosives Den-iso had made in his apartment would not set off a metal detector.
In addition to setting bail, Judge Grabau said, "I do care about his hand."
The judge recommended surgery at Mass General, although this decision is up to the Sheriff's Department. Faulkner Hospital has a guarded ward, and Mass General would require posting overtime guards.
In the next week, Deniso will again be in jail, the hospital, court and maybe back on the streets, if he can post bail.
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