Charges against murder suspect’s mother withdrawn
Charges of conspiracy and fraud were withdrawn Monday against the mother of a Brownsville man accused of allegedly gunning down another man over drug money in April. Trooper Christian D. Lieberum said Ella L. Williamson of Frick Street, Brownsville, was charged in May before Magisterial District Judge Michael Defino with criminal conspiracy to commit forgery, receiving stolen property and possession of drug paraphernalia after police found her with dozens of stolen credit and debit cards. During a preliminary hearing held Monday before Defino, all charges against Williamson were withdrawn.
Williamson’s son, William Philip “Teenie” Black, 30, also of Frick Street, was charged in April before Magisterial District Judge Randy S. Abraham with criminal homicide and robbery.
Police had issued a warrant for Black’s arrest after several days of investigation following the shooting death of Mark Joseph Pierce, 34, of Brownsville on April 20.
During the investigation into Pierce’s death, Lieberum said investigators served a search warrant at Williamson’s home, where they found her purse filled with stolen identifications, credit cards, debit cards and medication.
Lieberum said the purse contained personal information and identification cards of nine people, including a wallet reported stolen in Centerville in April, as well as drug paraphernalia.
He said that Williamson admitted that she and Pierce were friends and that he used to steal purses from the Centerville area.
Williamson said she and Pierce would then go to local convenience stores and use bank cards and credit cards from the stolen purses to purchase cigarettes to exchange with local drug dealers for crack cocaine.
She also told police that Pierce had given her the stolen items to “hold onto” sometime prior to his death.
Pierce’s body was found near a car on Playford Avenue in Brownsville shortly after 8 p.m. April 20.
Fayette County Deputy Coroner Marisa Springer said she pronounced Pierce dead at the scene at 9:43 p.m.
Springer said the cause of death was multiple gunshots wounds and that the manner of death has been ruled a homicide.
Lieberum said Pierce used drugs and Black was angry regarding unpaid debt from a prior drug deal.
Multiple confidential witnesses told investigators that Black threatened Pierce because of the unpaid debt, Lieberum said.
According to court records in several counties, Black has been in and out of prison for the last decade on charges ranging from sexual assault to drug possession.
He was released on probation less than two months before the shooting.
Black waived all charges against him to Fayette County Court during a preliminary hearing held in June. Black has had multiple charges filed against him in Fayette, Washington and Dauphin counties and has been sentenced to prison in seven separate cases.
Black remains in the Fayette County Prison without bond.