Homicide appeal comes back to Butler
A post-conviction appeal by a former Kittanning man now serving life in prison for pelting a Muddy Creek Township man with rocks until he drowned in a strip mine pond in 1990 will return to Butler County Court, after the state Superior Court ruled that the county court erred in dismissing the appeal as untimely.
The Superior Court ruled Wednesday that the appeal filed by Steven D. Vogt, 47, from his cell at the state prison in Fayette, would return to the county to be heard again, after concluding that its dismissal by the county court after being deemed untimely was made in error, “conflating the merits and timeliness analyses.”
According to previous reporting, Vogt and Walter Cowfer, now 52, of Export, were found guilty of first-degree murder, kidnapping and robbery by a jury on Jan. 31, 1991.
They were implicated with three other people in the death of 60-year-old Francis Landry. Authorities believe the group in May 1990 conspired to rob Landry, who had recently moved from his Portersville-area home to Cowfer's place.
An autopsy said Landry suffered broken ribs, bruises and scrapes before he died of asphyxiation due to drowning. Landry's body was discovered hours after his death by divers who had been using the pond for training.
The four male defendants reportedly used Landry's car and checkbook to pay for a trip to Florida before their arrest.
Read the full story in Sunday's Butler Eagle.
