Court briefs
Defendant seeks delay A South Connellsville man accused of taking pictures as he sexually abused children asked for more time to prepare his case Monday.
Fayette County Judge Gerald R. Solomon was set to take Joseph T. Stagner Jr.’s guilty plea to multiple counts of sex-related abuse, but Stagner said he was dissatisfied with the amount of time his attorney, deputy public defender David Kaiser, spent with him.
Stagner, 45, did not fill out a question on his guilty plea sheet that asked if he was satisfied with Kaiser’s representation.
“I wished to put ‘no’ on it, but I was kept from doing that,” Stagner told Solomon.
After brief questioning, Stagner said that he wanted more time to talk to Kaiser, and Solomon said he would not take the plea.
Stagner planned to plead guilty generally to 11 counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, 12 counts of indecent assault, three counts of corruption of minors and 62 counts of sexual abuse of children. The girls Stagner allegedly abused are 13, 10 and 6 years old. The general plea means his sentence would have been up to Solomon.
The abuse came to light when health care worker caring for Stagner’s mother came across the photos near his computer and called state police. Authorities found 23 Polaroid pictures and five sheets of photos.
Trial postponed
A Merrittstown man accused in a drive-by shooting of fatally shooting Christopher Hackett had his criminal homicide trial continued until March.
Shawn Lee Lowther, through his attorney, Public Defender Jeffrey Whiteko, requested the continuance Monday in Fayette County Court. Lowther, said Whiteko, was just arraigned and the public defender’s office was just retained to represent Lowther.
Lowther, 30, allegedly shot Hackett, 21, in the chest with a shotgun while Hackett was standing outside an apartment at South Hill Terrace in Brownsville.
Hackett, police claimed, allegedly assaulted Lowther’s wife after a drug deal went awry in the housing project.
Hackett allegedly hit her in the left side of the face with a bottle before she drove away from him.
About 20 minutes later Lowther came back to the housing project and allegedly fired two shots from a long-barreled gun at Hackett.
Man on trial
The trial for a Uniontown man accused of having individually wrapped portions of cocaine in his possession started Monday in Fayette County Court.
Robert Anthony Mullin, 22, of 295 Edison Ave. allegedly had seven baggie corners in a change purse on Oct. 11, 2003. State police trooper Christopher Egidi found the alleged cocaine after he arrested Mullin for driving under the influence of alcohol along Barton Mill Road in South Union Township.
Markleysburg man faces trial
A Markleysburg man was in Fayette County court Monday for a trial on charges that he had sex with a minor.
Mark D. Warman, 29, of 162 Clovertop Road is charged with statutory sexual assault, corruption of minors and furnishing liquor to a minor for an alleged July 9, 2002 encounter with a 15-year-old girl at his home.
The teen went to police on July 17, 2002 and said he offered her beer and the two had sex. Several months later, police questioned Warman and he reportedly admitted to the sexual contact.
His trial will resume this morning.
Man claims self defense
A Fayette County jury will decide if a Belle Vernon man was defending himself when he allegedly stabbed another man in a throat with a screwdriver on Sept. 25, 2003.
Charles Sillings, 50, of 1344 Fayette Ave. is charged with aggravated assault and related crimes for allegedly injuring John Tabron when he found Tabron sleeping in the backseat of his car.
Sillings told jurors Monday that he has multiple sclerosis, a chronic, long-term condition that affects the central nervous system. As he fought with Tabron to get him out of his car, Sillings said his legs gave out and he fell to the ground.
There, he claimed Tabron kicked his head against a car tire. Sillings testified he stabbed at Tabron with a screwdriver, and thought he hit his foot or leg.
Washington Township police, however, found Tabron bleeding in the parking lot of the Starlight Bar. The screwdriver hit an artery. Police indicated at trial that when they went to interview Sillings shortly after the attack, he had only one red mark on his head.
The trial will pick up this morning.