Drug, gun charges dismissed against suspects in mass killing

Drug and gun charges against the two men charged with killing five adults and an unborn child in Wilkinsburg last year were thrown out Monday morning.

Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge David R. Cashman granted two requests from defense attorneys for Cheron Shelton and Robert Thomas, as well as a third co-defendant in the drug case, Justin Gomez.

The charges that were dismissed have no bearing on the homicide prosecution. That case, in which prosecutors are seeking the death penalty, is not expected to go to trial for several months.

“Mr. Shelton is heartened by the court’s ruling,” said defense attorney Randall McKinney. “With respect to the Wilkinsburg shootings, he continues to adamantly deny any involvement and looks forward to his day in court.”

Casey White, who represents Thomas, called the judge’s ruling “insightful.”

“Not only did he agree with our claim that the evidence was insufficient, but he also concluded that Mr. Thomas’ statutory and constitutional rights were violated by the refiling of this case,” Mr. White said. “From day one, Mr. Thomas has asserted his innocence in all matters [in which] he has been charged.”

Casey Mullen, who represents Gomez, said it was the right ruling.

“It’s been a long process to get here,” he said. “Mr. Gomez is excited to have this behind him and be able to move on.”

Gomez is not charged in the shooting case.

The three defendants in the case dismissed on Monday were initially charged in 2013. But the charges were dismissed by Magisterial District Judge Kim Marie Hoots, first on March 28, 2013, after the prosecution put in two postponement requests, and again on July 18, 2013, after the district attorney’s office had refiled them but was still not ready to proceed.

Then in April 2016, as county homicide investigators were working to solve the March 9, 2016, mass shooting in Wilkinsburg, the gun and drug charges were refiled against the three co-defendants, as well as Ashley Smith, who lived with them.

Defense attorneys immediately objected, arguing that the refiled charges were a pretext to take Shelton and Thomas into custody because they had been identified as suspects in the shooting.

Charges in the homicide were filed weeks later.

Defense attorneys fought the 2013 case, arguing that the prosecution was barred by Rule 600, which requires that a defendant be tried within 180 days if in custody or within 365 days if not.

Judge Cashman granted the defense motion based on Rule 600, as well as what he found to

be a faulty search warrant.

According to the affidavit of probable cause, the charges against Shelton, Thomas and Gomez were filed after probation officers went to a home in the 900 block of Hill Avenue looking for Shelton and Gomez on Feb. 21, 2013.

The officers claimed that when they entered, they saw heroin in plain view and then obtained a search warrant for the rest of the home.

In the subsequent search, officers found an assault-style rifle, three handguns, other weapons, ammunition and drug paraphernalia.

But Judge Cashman said that in reviewing the affidavit for the warrant and the preliminary hearing testimony, it was clear that there was no heroin found in plain view when officers first went in. The evidence, he said, was under a sink.

“So, apparently, either somebody forgot or somebody made a representation to the court that was untrue for the sole purpose of acquiring a search warrant,” Judge Cashman said.