Rahmael Sal Holt was sentenced to death by the State of Pennsylvania for the murder of a police officer. According to court documents Rahmael Sal Holt would shoot and kill New Kensington police officer Brian Shaw following a traffic stop. Rahmael Sal Holt would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death
Parole Number: 795GS Age: 32 Date of Birth: 05/31/1988 Race/Ethnicity: BLACK Height: 5′ 11″ Gender: MALE Citizenship: USA Complexion: MEDIUM Current Location: PHOENIX
A death sentence handed down by jurors in November for Rahmael Sal Holt — who was found guilty of the 2017 shooting death of New Kensington police officer Brian Shaw — was finalized by a Westmoreland County judge during a brief hearing Wednesday morning.
A jury had unanimously convicted Holt, 31, after the rookie officer was killed Nov. 17, 2017, while attempting to pull over a Jeep driven by Tavon Harper in New Kensington. Holt was a passenger in the car, and jurors determined that the Harrison native jumped from the vehicle and shot Officer Shaw during a foot chase through a dark lot.
Wednesday’s sentencing hearing began just before 10 a.m. and lasted about 15 minutes in Westmoreland County Common Pleas Judge Rita Hathaway’s courtroom. Holt and members of the Shaw family were present, but neither testified, defense attorney Tim Dawson said.
In addition to finalizing the death sentence, the hearing addressed two of the four counts Holt was found guilty on in November: person not to possess a firearm and carrying a firearm without a license. As a convicted felon, he was not permitted to possess firearms.
Holt was formally sentenced about 10 to 27 years between the two charges on Wednesday, although police never found a weapon in their investigation. Holt’s cousin Lisa Harrington was charged with tampering with evidence and firearms violations after police said she hid the murder weapon.
Holt’s attorney, Mr. Dawson, noted his disappointment in the trial, and highlighted that it took jurors just over an hour to sentence his client to death.
Mr. Dawson also noted that despite claims that Harper was not provided incentive for his role as a key prosecution witness, he was released from prison almost immediately after the trial.
“All capital cases are automatically reviewed by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, but there will be several issues that will be reviewed in this case,” Mr. Dawson said Wednesday. “Tavon Harper was released from jail a day after trial.”
Upon review of the case, the state’s top court will determine if the verdict was a product of passion, prejudice or an arbitrary factor, Mr. Dawson said.
Holt was sent to the Rockview state prison in Centre County following Wednesday’s hearing. He will likely be moved to Greene SCI or another facility, officials said.
Pennsylvania Death Row for men is located at the State Correctional Institution – Greene, while some are housed at State Correctional Institution – Phoenix. Pennsylvania Death Row for women is located at the State Correctional Institution – Muncy. Pennsylvania primary method of execution is lethal injection
Kaboni Savage was sentenced to death by the Federal Government for a series of murders in Pennsylvania. According to court documents Kaboni Savage ordered the firebombing of a witness home that resulted in six people being killed including four children. Kaboni Savage was also convicted of six other murders making his total murder convictions twelve. Kaboni Savage was given thirteen death sentences, twelve for murder and one for witness intimidation. Kaboni Savage is currently being held at ADX Florence where he will remain until his death sentence is carried out at the Federal Penitentiary in Terra Haute. As of 2021 he mains on Federal Death Row
A Pennsylvania drug dealer convicted of committing or ordering at least a dozen murders, including the firebombing killings of an entire family, failed Thursday to convince a federal appeals court panel to overturn the 13 death sentences he faces.
That decision against Kaboni Savage came in a 201-page opinion by Chief Judge D. Brooks Smith of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit.
The circuit court ruling leaves Savage, who once ran a wide-ranging and violent drug trafficking ring in the Philadelphia area, with the dubious honor of being the only Pennsylvanian on federal death row.
Investigators said Savage, now 45, inspired terror for more than two decades.
In March 1998, he shot and killed a man for accidentally bumping his car, they said. Later, Savage had the sole witness to that killing, a fellow drug dealer, gunned down the evening before Savage was to go on trial for the murder.
Savage routinely ordered the murders of business rivals or any member of his organization he suspected of being disloyal, investigators said.
They said that in October 2004 Savage ordered a hit on the family of a former colleague who was cooperating with authorities. Hours later, Savage’s associates firebombed the family’s home, killing the other man’s mother, infant son, 15- and 12-year-old nephews and his cousin and her 10-year-old daughter.
Recordings of prison conversations “revealed Savage’s great satisfaction that the killings had taken place, and the intercepted conversations revealed plans to kill yet other witnesses and their families,” Smith wrote.
He cited one recording where Savage said, “By the time of trial everybody be dead.” In other recordings listed in the circuit court opinion Savage raged about killing all the “rats” who were talking to police and their love ones as well.
“You know what it’s going to cost you, your life and your mom’s life,” Savage was taped telling one witness. “I’m going to kill your mother.” In another recording he spoke of punishing a government witness by killing “everything that you love.” Savage added,” Yeah, he got a daughter down my way. I’m going to blow her little head off. She like five.
Several of those who testified against Savage opted to enter the federal Witness Protection Program, Smith noted.
Savage received his death sentences in June 2013, a month after a federal jury convicted him on 12 counts of murder and one of witness retaliation.
In denying Savage’s appeal, Smith rejected his claims that he didn’t receive a fair trial – he claimed prejudice in part because the jury for his case was overwhelmingly white – that the trial judge issued rulings that violated his civil rights, and that prosecutors cherry-picked the evidence to use against him, omitting factors that might have weighed in his favor.
“Exercising the heightened responsibility required of us (in death penalty cases), we discern no grounds entitling Savage to relief on any of the issues he raises,” Smith wrote.
The circuit court ruling was sharply criticized by Savage’s attorney Lawrence S. Lustberg in the following statement.
“In its first decision on a federal death sentence in the modern era, the Third Circuit has failed to offer coherent guidance to trial courts conducting death penalty cases and has endorsed significant infringements on the rights of defendants facing capital punishment. For example, in a truly unprecedented ruling, the court holds that it was acceptable to substitute a new lead attorney for Mr. Savage in the middle of jury selection, a situation in which no lawyer, no matter how experienced, could have rendered an adequate defense. Under the circumstances, it is inconceivable to us that the court of appeals could have been satisfied that a death verdict was appropriate.”
“This is especially so because the Third Circuit also resolved many issues in the prosecution’s favor even though dozens of important portions of the lower-court proceedings were held off the record, and even though Mr. Savage’s appellate lawyers, who were not involved in the trial, diligently attempted to create an appropriate appellate record. As a result, we were left in the dark about what actually happened. But the court nevertheless concluded that no error occurred. We will continue to pursue relief based on these and other similarly flawed rulings in the panel’s decision.”
Gabriella Long was a seventeen year old from Pennsylvania who was living with her Grandfather. Gabriella Long would convince her friends Mercedes Hall, Christopher Cortez and Devin Cunningham that they should murder her Grandfather and steal the money in the safe.
When Christopher Cortez fatally stabbed the elderly man Gabriella and Mercedes were apparently hiding in the bedroom. After the elderly man was dead the teen killers would steal $30,000 and go on a shopping spree. Gabriella Long would plead guilty to third degree murder and be sentenced to 35 to 80 years in prison.
Gabriella Long 2023 Information
Parole Number: PD5894 Age: 19 Date of Birth: 08/14/2001 Race/Ethnicity: WHITE Height: 5′ 08″ Gender: FEMALE Citizenship: USA Complexion: MEDIUM Current Location: CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS
Three others were also charged in Monka’s death. Mercedes Hall, 16, and Christopher Cortez, 20, have also pleaded guilty to third degree murder. Devin Cunningham, 21, is awaiting trial.
Prosecutors say Cortez stabbed Monka while Long and Hall were in a nearby bedroom.
The four also stole $30,000 from Monka. They allegedly went on a shopping spree after committing the murder. Long was living with Monka at the time of the murder.
Gabriella Long was sentenced to 35 to 80 years in prison.
The girl was just 17 when she and three others plotted to rob and kill her grandfather in April 2019 for $30K in cash and his car.
Now, Gabriella Long will be spending decades in prison after pleading guilty to third-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in Luzerne County Court, according to WNEP-TV.
County Judge William H. Amesbury immediately sentenced Long to serve 17½ to 40 years on each count. The sentences will be served consecutively, the Citizens Voice reported.
Gabriella Long is likely to spend at least 40 to 50 years in prison, prosecutors in the case said.
It is a huge swing for Long, whose legal team was at one point considering a bid to move her case to juvenile court.
Gabriella Long and three others were charged in the plot to rob and kill Joseph Monka, 71, at his Edwardsville home.
Both 16-year-old Mercedes Hall and Christopher Corteze have already pleaded guilty. The fourth is Devin Cunningham, whose trial is scheduled to begin on September 28 in Wilkes-Barre.
According to prosecutors, Gabriella Long was the key in setting a trap for her grandfather. She called out to him for help, pretending to be in distress somewhere in the home, and Cortez and Cunningham ambushed Monka, stabbing him dozens of times and beating him severely with a golf club.
All four then stole about $30,000 in cash from Monka’s safe and drove off in his vehicle, prosecutors allege
Cortez pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in June. He was sentenced to 35 to 80 years in state prison.
Hall, who was 16 at the time of the crime, pleaded guilty to third-degree murder. She has not been sentenced.
#Mercedes Hall was sentenced to 6 to 12 years in prison#
Cunningham has not entered a plea or faced trial in county court. He is charged with homicide, criminal conspiracy, theft and robbery.
Gabriella Long was silent as she was led into a courthouse in Wilkes-Barre on Monday, WNEP reports, adding:
Inside, Long’s mother and grandmother told the judge before sentencing that they tried for years to get Long the mental health help she needs. They said they hope she can now get that help while serving the 35-to 80-year prison sentence that the unmoved judge handed down.
Parole Number: PD7355 Age: 18 Date of Birth: 01/20/2003 Race/Ethnicity: WHITE Height: 5′ 01″ Gender: FEMALE Citizenship: USA Complexion: MEDIUM Current Location: MUNCY
Devin Cunningham 2021 Information
Parole Number: QF5943 Age: 21 Date of Birth: 04/07/1999 Race/Ethnicity: BLACK Height: 6′ 01″ Gender: MALE Citizenship: USA Complexion: DARK Current Location: FRACKVILLE
Christopher Cortez 2021 Information
Parole Number: QD8168 Age: 21 Date of Birth: 12/22/1999 Race/Ethnicity: WHITE Height: 5′ 09″ Gender: MALE Citizenship: USA Complexion: FAIR Current Location: CAMP HILL
Gabriella Long Other News
A woman is headed to prison after admitting to charges in the murder of her grandfather.
Gabriella Long was just 17 years old when she and three others plotted to rob and kill her grandfather, Joseph Monka, 71, of Edwardsville, in April of 2019.
Long was silent as she was led into a courthouse in Wilkes-Barre
This visit to the courthouse was supposed to be about moving her case to juvenile court. She was 17 at the time of the murder, but instead, she entered a guilty plea to third-degree murder and other charges, a development that prosecutors are not surprised by.
“These cases have been moving toward a resolution. We have been working really hard reviewing the case, putting the case together. We had a compelling case, and oftentimes when you have a compelling case, and you’re ready to move forward, a resolution is reached,” said Luzerne County Assistant District Attorney Jarrett Ferentino.
Long’s mother and grandmother were in court before the judge passed his sentence. They spoke about how they tried for years to get Long the mental health help she needs. They hope she can now get that help while serving a 35-to 80-year sentence in prison.
“There’s a lot of emotion in any homicide plea, but when family is involved on both sides of a homicide, absolutely, it was very emotional for them,” Ferentino said.
Three others were also charged with Monka’s murder. Both 16-year-old Mercedes Hall and Christopher Corteze have already pleaded guilty. The fourth is Devin Cunningham.
“We’re going to be ready if Mr. Cunningham is seeking a trial in this case. We’re going to be ready to have a trial on the event that resolves, but at this point, we’re ready to try that case,” Ferentino said.
The trial for Cunningham is scheduled to begin on September 28 in Wilkes-Barre.
A teenager received a sentence of up to 80 years in prison after admitting her role in the tragic murder of her grandfather last year. 18-year-old Gabriella Long pleaded guilty on Monday to third-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in the death of her 71-year-old grandfather, Joseph Monka, in his Edwardsville residence in April 2019. Shortly after her admission, County Judge William H. Amesbury sentenced Long to serve 17½ to 40 years on each count consecutively, meaning Long could spend anywhere between 35 to 80 years in state prison.
Long was 17 and staying at her grandfather’s Arch Street home at the time of his killing. She is the third of four defendants in the case to plead guilty to his murder.
Long and three others — Christopher Cortez, Devin Cunningham and Mercedes Hall — allegedly set a trap for Monka as they plotted to steal cash that he purportedly kept locked up in a basement safe, prosecutors said.
Long reportedly pretended to be in distress and called out to her grandfather for help, prosecutors allege. When he rushed to rescue his granddaughter, Cortez and Cunningham ambushed Monka – stabbing him dozens of times and brutally beating him with a golf club. After battering him to death, the four defendants reportedly stole about $30,000 in cash from Monka’s safe and drove off in his vehicle.
Cortez, who pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in June, was sentenced to 35 to 80 years in state prison. Hall was just 16 at the time of the heinous crime. She is yet to be sentenced despite pleading guilty to third-degree murder. Cunningham, meanwhile, is charged with homicide, criminal conspiracy, theft, and robbery. However, he has not entered a plea agreement or faced trial in county court
Assistant District Attorney Jarrett Ferentino said Long is likely to spend at least 40 to 50 years in prison. Prosecutors agreed to withdraw a number of charges, including theft and tampering with evidence, in exchange for her guilty plea.
In another shocking episode in May, an Arizona resident reportedly slit his 81-year-old grandmother’s throat because he “was tired of taking care of her.” Helen Smith was allegedly killed by 30-year-old Brandon Smith, who was charged with first-degree murder in his grandma’s death. She was found in the bathroom of the house that she had shared with Brandon in Chandler. Authorities from Chandler Police Department said that Helen, who suffered from dementia, was found with multiple stab wounds at the scene.
According to the arrest report, Brandon told law enforcement that he became frustrated after Helen allegedly urinated on herself one fateful morning. He subsequently took her to the bathroom for a shower and slapped her in the face, leading Helen to fall in the tub and lose consciousness, according to WFSB.
Brandon said it was then that he realized he didn’t want his grandma to “live like this anymore.” So, he grabbed a knife from the kitchen and slit his grandmother’s throat in the tub. Immediately after, the 30-year-old dialed 911 and reported to authorities that his grandma was “not breathing” and that it looked like “someone had beaten her up and sliced her throat.”
According to law enforcement, Brandon was already on probation for aggravated assault.
A teen has been sentenced to spend up to 80 years behind bars for her role in the murder of her grandfather. Gabriella Long, 18, was sentenced to 35 to 80 years in prison on Monday after she pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in connection with the death of her grandfather, 71-year-old Joseph Monka, in Edwardsville, Pennsylvania last year. Long was 17 when she and her three friends – Christopher Cortez, Devin Cunningham and Mercedes Hall – ambushed and killed Monka, prosecutors said. Police said Long called her grandfather and pretended to be in distress. When he arrived, Cortez and Cunningham surprised Monka, stabbed him dozens of times and beat him with a golf club, according to The Citizen.
Afterward, the four defendants stole approximately $30,000 in cash from Monka’s safe and fled in his vehicle, prosecutors said.
Long was the third person to plead guilty in the case of her grandfather’s murder. Cortez pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in June. He was subsequently sentenced to 35 and 80 years in prison.
Hall, who was 16 years old during the murder, pleaded guilty to third-degree murder in Decenber although she has not yet been sentenced. Cunningham has not entered a plea or gone to trial yet. He is charged with murder, criminal conspiracy, theft and robbery. After Long’s hearing on Monday, her lawyer, Jarrett Ferentino, told The Citizen that he could not comment in detail on the case because Cunningham’s case is still open. Ferentino said Long is likely to spend at least 40 to 50 years in prison. Long’s guilty plea was a part of a plea deal that saw prosecutors withdraw additional charges the teen faced, including theft and tampering with evidence.
Dakota Thornton was fifteen years old from Pennsylvania when he murdered his older brother. According to court documents Dakota Thornton was in love with his brother’s girlfriend so he figured the best way to deal with it was to kill his brother. This teen killer would fatally shoot his brother with a shotgun. Once police arrived on the scene Dakota would quickly confessed to the murder. Dakota would plead guilty and be sentenced to seven and a half years to forty five years in prison
Dakota Thornton 2023 Information
Parole Number: NA1763 Age: 20 Date of Birth: 07/09/2000 Race/Ethnicity: WHITE Height: 5′ 07″ Gender: MALE Citizenship: USA Complexion: MEDIUM Current Location: SOMERSET
Nearly a year to the day after the slaying, a 16-year-old upper Dauphin County boy pleaded guilty Wednesday to third-degree murder for fatally shooting his 18-year-old brother during a dispute over a girl.
That decision means Dakota Thornton, who was 15 when he pulled the trigger, could serve as little as 7 1/2 years or as much as 45 years behind bars for murdering his brother Dominick in their Williams Township home.
The killing occurred at 2 a..m. last March 30 when Dakota Thornton shot his brother with a .410- gauge shotgun in an apartment on Autumn Drive. Police said the younger boy committed the slaying because he was romantically interested in his brother’s girlfriend.
Wednesday’s guilty plea hearing before Dauphin County Judge Deborah E. Curcillo took less than 10 minutes.
Under the deal outlined by First Assistant District Attorney Fran Chardo, Dakota Thornton has no agreement regarding the length of the prison sentence he must receive. That call will be up to Curcillo, who scheduled sentencing for June.
Dakota Thornton, a skinny kid with a shaved head, answered, “Yes, sir,” crisply when Chardo asked if he was accepting a plea agreement, which defense attorney Wendy Grella lauded as compassionate.
Factors that Curcillo will consider in fashioning a penalty include Dakota Thornton’s juvenile criminal record, which Chardo said includes consent agreements or adjudications for charges of aggravated assault, simple assault, making terroristic threats and possessing a weapon on school property. The first of those offenses occurred in 2012, the prosecutor said.
By accepting Chardo’s plea deal, Dakota Thornton scrapped a request to Curcillo to send his case to juvenile court. He was charged with murder as an adult right after his arrest. Had his case gone to juvenile court, he could not have received a sentence that would have kept him incarcerated beyond his 21st birthday.
After Dakota Thornton accepted the plea deal, Grella asked Curcillo to sentence him as soon as possible. “My client is anxious to start serving his sentence,” she said.
Chardo said the plea agreement was fashioned in consultation Dakota Thornton’s family.
“I think Mr. Chardo gave a lot of time and appropriate consideration of the factors in this case,” Grella said following the hearing.
She said factors that will weigh into her client’s sentence will include his mental health issues, that he was the victim of abuse while in foster care, and that “his meds weren’t given to him” on the day of the slaying.
Grella said the plan to try to move the case to juvenile court was dropped because of doubt that Curcillo would accept an arrangement that would free Dakota Thornton from prison without supervision so soon.
“This,” she said of the plea agreement, “is an appropriate resolution for the entire family.”
A sibling rivalry turned deadly after a lovesick Pennsylvania teen killed his older brother in a fight over a girlfriend.
“They were both interested in the same girl,” District Attorney Ed Marsico said about the brother’s killing, PennLive reported.
Dakota Thornton, 15, blasted his 18-year-old brother Dominick with a shotgun early Wednesday morning after longing for the older sibling’s girlfriend, police said.
After Pennsylvania State Police arrived at the 2 a.m. shooting, the heartbroken sibling put his hands up and admitted, “I shot my brother,” according to records.
Dakota confessed that he loaded up the shotgun just two minutes before the deadly shooting at the Dauphin County home, and told troopers he did it because he was romantically interested in his brother’s girlfriend, ABC27 reported.
“It’s very shocking,” a neighbor told the local station. “I just saw Dominick outside yesterday. Just to know he’s dead now — I actually watched them carry him outside in a body bag. It’s not usual around here at all.”
The 15-year-old accused killer is being charged with homicide as an adult, and held without bail.
His first court appearance is scheduled for April 6
Dakota Thornton is currently incarcerated at the Somerset facility
Dakota Thornton Release Date
Dakota Thornton is first eligible for parole in 2024
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