Trio sentenced for county man's murder
WASHINGTON, Pa. — A Butler County mother and father spoke lovingly and proudly of their son, bearing witness to his life.
In addressing the judge who would be sentencing their son's killers, Denise and Robert McNerney on Monday spoke of Tim McNerney's devotion to family, his joy of living and his respect for others.
“His spirit was kind and good,” Denise McNerney said, unable to hold back tears.
They spoke of their pain over the suddenness and senselessness of his death at the tender age of 21.
While the proud parents stood tall in the packed Washington County courtroom, their child's three killers sat emotionless at their defense table.
Moments earlier, the three defendants, handcuffed and dressed in prison orange, apologized to the McNerney family, expressed remorse and pleaded for leniency.
“Just words,” Robert McNerney said, unmoved by the trio's expressions of sorrow.
Deferring forgiveness to God, the McNerneys asked for the maximum penalty.
Visiting Allegheny County Judge Edward Borkowski one-by-one checked off the sentences for the trio convicted of murdering McNerney of Penn Township and of robbing his friend during a chance encounter Oct. 4, 2012, near the Washington & Jefferson College campus.
Eric D. Wells, 25, of Pittsburgh, who delivered the sucker punch that would end Tim McNerney's life, received 13 to 31 years in state prison.
Wells' accomplices Adam R. Hankins, 25, of Washington got 9 to 25 years and Troy L. Simmons Jr., 24, of East Pittsburgh received 7 to 20 years for their roles in the deadly attack.
“I can't say I'm satisfied,” Robert McNerney said outside the courtroom after the emotional sentencing hearing. “I lost my son.”The defendants in May all pleaded guilty to a general charge of homicide in the death of McNerney, a senior W & J running back and one-time standout football player at Knoch High School. Borkowski, in turn, convicted them of third-degree murder.They also pleaded guilty to robbing Zachary DeCicco of Allegheny County, then 22, the friend who was with McNerney that fateful night.McNerney and DeCicco, a fellow W & J football player, were walking home from a bar about 2:30 a.m. when they ran into the defendants, who they had never met before.Prosecutors said the suspects intended to rob the victims of their money and cell phones.Washington police believe Wells punched McNerney, hitting him on the chin and knocking him to the ground. McNerney died of head injuries, likely from hitting the back of his head as he fell.Hankins and Simmons tag-teamed DeCicco, breaking his nose. Battered and bloodied, DeCicco managed to get away with all his belongings.The defendants rummaged through McNerney's clothing, while he lay unconscious. taking his wallet and cell phone.The killing would remain unsolved for 10 months until GPS records on McNerney's stolen phone led police to the suspects. Their arrests did not come until Aug. 6, 2013.Bor-kowski, before rendering the sentences, called the fatal attack an “unfortunate crime of opportunity fueled by alcohol and ego.”
The prison terms, all different, are all within the state guidelines.Wells got the longest stint because “he's the gentleman that inflicted the fatal blow (to McNerney),” Washington County District Attorney Eugene Vittone said later in dissecting the sentence.Simmons got the lightest sentence because unlike Wells and Hankins, he had no prior criminal record.“I think his record, especially the latest drug arrest, was the reason he got the most time,” said Wells' attorney, Michael DeRiso of Pittsburgh.Wells and Hankins, while still at large for McNerney's killing, were arrested in August 2013 when they were caught with drugs following a traffic stop in Fayette County.Both men recently pleaded guilty to felony and misdemeanor possession, and are to be sentenced next month in that case.Robert McNerney, speaking to Borkowski at Monday's sentencing, referred to that drug case in calling for stiff jail time.“It appears recidivism is what we can expect from them,” he said, “not recovery and improvement.”His assessment followed apologies from all three defendants.“I wish I could offer more than a sincere apology, but I can't,” Wells said, reading from a prepared statement while facing the McNerney family seated in several rows of courtroom benches. “I'm better than this. I apologize.”Hankins kept his back to the family in reading his written remarks.“I offer my heartfelt apology,” he said. “No words can convey the sorrow I feel.”Looking at the McNerney clan, Simmons spoke without notes.“My actions were reckless, stupid and selfish,” he said. “I hope everyone here can forgive me for my mishaps and mistakes.”
A woman of faith, Denise McNerney acknowledged an inner struggle to adhere to her belief in compassion. But this time, she said, justice for her son trumped mercy for his killers.“I have prayed and sought earthly advice,” she said in a victim impact statement read to the court. “I have reviewed God's word from the Bible, and contemplated what Tim would want or say.“My decision is that I cannot forgive you,” she told the defendants. “That is in the hands of the Lord and yourself upon your Judgment Day.”
