‘Intended to end her life’
32 to 64 years for gunman who tried to silence witness
MEDIA COURTHOUSE » A Philadelphia man convicted on attempted homicide and related charges for shooting a witness to silence her in a 2017 fraud case was sentenced to 32 to 64 years in a state prison.
Common Pleas Court Judge Margaret Amoroso levied four consecutive sentences against Charles E. Poole III on charges of attempted murder, intimidation of a witness and two firearms offenses, noting he was probably the most dangerous criminal she had ever seen.
“Because you’re charming, and handsome, and you’re smart,” the judge said. “And for all those qualities, what did you choose? You chose to commit crime after crime after crime.”
Poole, 45, was also found guilty of two counts of aggravated assault following a jury trial before Amoroso last month, though Deputy District Attorney Geoff Paine noted those charges merge with attempted murder for purposes of sentencing.
Testimony at trial
The victim testified at trial that she was shot in the head and chest on the morning of June 6, 2017, in a driveway between Clinton and Guilford roads in Upper Darby.
She said she had just dropped off her 5-year-old at his bus stop around 8:15 a.m. when a man wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt approached and fired.
The victim said she was set to testify that same week against two co-defendants in a New Jersey fraud scheme using women with fake identification to open bogus lines of credit at stores.
Arabella Santos, the Middlesex County assistant prosecutor trying that case, said attorneys for Poole and the other defendant, Derrick Smith, were aware she planned to testify.
“The state was heavily relying on her testimony,” said Santos.
Without it, however, charges against Poole were dismissed. Smith received probation after entering into a noncustodial plea.
Two other women involved in the fraud scheme testified that Poole had also threatened them with death
or violence, and one said Poole told her he once shot a girl in Upper Darby that was testifying against him.
A third associate who made fake IDs for Poole said he had once admitted to shooting someone in the head, but they had lived. Poole is currently facing a first-degree murder charge in Philadelphia, according to Paine.
Upper Darby Detective Dustin Clark and Detective Sgt. Matthew Rowles said they developed Poole as a person of interest early on and had tied him to a dark Nissan Maxima caught on camera in the shooting.
Police recovered three .380-caliber shells from the scene and determined Poole’s mother owned such a weapon, but were unable to locate it when they served a search warrant on her house, Rowles said. It had not been reported stolen.
Poole was finally captured discussing the shooting on audio and video during another investigation into his
activities by the Philadelphia branch of the FBI in 2019.
Agent Adam Cook from that office testified that he sent the video to Upper Darby police. In the video, Poole specifically advised another person not to use a .380 because he shot someone in the head with one and they survived. Poole also said he had his hood pulled down low so the victim could not see his face.
History of violence
Amoroso noted Poole had “an incredibly long history of committing crimes,” and that he appeared to have done so in every year since 1997 except for those years he was in prison.
Defense attorney Brian Malloy said Poole was remaining silent Monday due to his pending appeal in the case, but he found Poole to be respectful and easy to work with. Malloy asked for concurrent sentences in the standard sentencing range.
Paine argued the court had seen nothing to justify mitigation or concurrent sentences, given the impact on the victim and Poole’s cavalier attitude.
He said the victim now suffers lifetime injuries from the attack, as well as mental health issues, and that Poole could be heard laughing about the shooting in the recordings played for the jury.
Paine added that with Poole’s prior criminal record his “standard range” here was actually at the top of the scale for each of the crimes he was convicted on.
“It was more important that he avoid responsibility in what was a theft case than (the victim’s) life,” Paine said. “And I don’t think there’s any mistake here that he intended to end her life that day, shooting her in the head at close range.”
The victim said at trial that she suffers memory issues and other lingering ailments form the shooting. She told the judge Monday that she has not been able to go to July 4 fireworks celebrations or cook certain foods that pop and sizzle too much since the shooting. Even a car with tinted windows rolling by shakes her up a little.
“Only by the grace of God, you’re not getting a life sentence because she lived,” Amoroso told Poole after handing down the sentence.