The Herald, Sharon, Pa.

Local News

December 10, 2009

UPDATE: Hearing rescheduled for teen’s accused shooter

By Patrick Cooley

HUBBARD TOWNSHIP — A Hubbard Township woman accused of shooting and killing 15 year-old Robert Flynn of Masury on Aug. 10 was in Trumbull County Court on Tuesday where lawyers on both sides of the case said the evidence continues to be processed.

“Different discoveries (of evidence) have been exchanged,” said Chuck Murrow, who is prosecuting Karen Adams. 29 and her boyfriend, Paul Sundy Jr. 40, who is charged with tampering with evidence and obstruction of justice. “But there’s nothing I can really comment on.”

Adams is charged with murder, three counts of assault, and a count of tampering with evidence. Both have pleaded not guilty.

Murrow and Jerry Ingram, who is representing Adams, told Trumbull County Common Pleas Court Judge Wyatt McKay that because they need time to process new evidence, her pre-trial hearing should be rescheduled.

“You have to be here on December 23,” McKay told Adams after both lawyers had agreed that would be an acceptable date.

“The discovery process is still unfolding,” Ingram said. “The prosecution and defense are making sure each side has everything they need.”

Both lawyers said a lot of new evidence is coming from investigators but neither said they could go into any specifics.

Sundy is scheduled to appear before Judge McKay on Jan. 17.

There could potentially be a change of plea before the case goes to trial, but Murrow said he doubts that will happen.

The shooting allegedly happened after a dispute between one of Flynn’s friends and Sundy, over a relationship with Sundy’s 16-year-old daughter.

Adams called 911 after midnight, telling the dispatcher that a group of teenagers had showed up at her house and was shooting at her and Sundy with BB guns. She said that she fired a “.22 varmint rifle” in the air to scare them off.

Three minutes later, a man who identified himself as John Ost called 911, and said that Flynn had been shot. He died later after being taken to St. Elizabeth Hospital in Youngstown and the Mahoning County coroner ruled the death a homicide.

Anthony Antonucci, who is from the same legal firm as Ingram, and had initially represented Adams, said in August that Adams shooting at the teenagers could have been justified in Ohio because of the Castle Doctrine that sometimes allows homeowners to defend themselves on their property.

Flynn’s family members have described him as a good kid, who hardly ever got into trouble, and probably only went along with Ost and the others that night because his friends were there.

He finished eighth grade in the spring, and would have been a freshman at Brookfield High School.

Text Only
Local News
  • Storm blows in fast, leaves damage

    A scattered storm that started in Michigan and pulled in moisture over Lake Erie organized itself into a locally-severe storm system Sunday over Mercer County.

    May 28, 2012

  • transit Transit is once-in-a-lifetime show

    A rare celestial wonder that won’t be seen again for more than a century is set to play out before our eyes and Farrell’s resident astronomer  is giving locals a chance to get a first-hand look at a “black dawn.”

    May 28, 2012 1 Photo

  • Ominous clouds Storms rumble through parts of Mercer County

    Temperatures dropped nearly 20 degrees Sunday as storms rumbled through parts of Mercer County in the afternoon and again in the evening. Some areas experienced high gusting winds during the early storms. The later storms were less windy, but dumped a lot of rain in a short span in the Shenango Valley as well as outlying areas. Temperatures are forecast for in the 90s on Memorial Day, with a chance of storms in the afternoon. Check out Sunday's Herald both in print and here for more details.

     

     

    May 27, 2012 1 Photo

  • Board wants pay freeze


    Sharon City School District officials are asking staff to take a wage freeze for the second year in a row to help cover a $1.9 million gap in the 2012-2013 budget in the face of further funding cuts by the state.

    May 27, 2012

  • City taps Pa. grant for downtown facelift


    The colorful flower baskets hanging in downtown Sharon are just one of the planted seeds officials hope will help the once-bustling area grow.

    May 27, 2012

  • pension graphic Pension bomb ticking for city

    The city of Sharon pays more people who don’t work there anymore than folks who still do.

    And the amount of money the city must pay to the retirees is going up about $250,000 next year, a hike that creates more problems for the cash-strapped town, City Manager Scott Andrejchak said.

    May 26, 2012 1 Photo

  • Church softball league to Mormons: You’re out!

    The Grove City Area Church Softball League’s decision to exclude a Mormon team from Slippery Rock has sparked a controversy far beyond the local sandlot.

    May 26, 2012

  • Fired bus driver files lawsuit

    A Mercer County woman fired from her job as a school bus driver over a 25-year-old drug conviction filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against a state education official and Jamestown Area School District.

    May 26, 2012

  • Recycling program a bit too popular

    The  county’s effort at going green by encouraging recycling in rural areas has been a tremendous success by most accounts, but isn’t without a few glitches. In Wilmington Township, residents often only have a window of a few minutes to get cardboard recyclables in before the bin is full, prompting a discussion among Mercer County Commissioners Wednesday morning.

    May 25, 2012

  • District will tap reserve fund

    Reynolds school directors plan to fill a $374,567 hole in the 2012-2013 budget with money from the district’s fund balance.

    May 25, 2012