The Herald, Sharon, Pa.

Local News

December 16, 2009

UPDATE: Accused rapist is free on bond

By Matt Snyder

MERCER COUNTY — A West Pittsburg man accused of luring a real estate agent to an empty Jefferson Township house and raping her June 11 is free on bond.

Michael R. Tackett, 38, had his bond reduced Thursday from $200,000 to $100,000 by Mercer County Common Pleas Court Judge John C. Reed after his defense attorney Thomas W. Leslie called the initial amount excessive.

Assistant Mercer County District Attorney Ryan Bonner said Tackett testified Thursday that he required medical attention due to back surgery, and that he couldn’t get it through the Mercer County Jail.

Tackett posted bail Friday. He is ordered not to have contact with the woman he allegedly raped. He has denied the allegations against him, according to court documents.

“Obviously, we were disappointed and alarmed that he bonded out,” said state police trooper Dan Sindlinger.

He said Tackett is potentially dangerous and may have a pattern of targeting real estate agents, and warned them not to show homes alone.

Tackett was charged with rape in 2003 and 2005 in Lawrence County and acquitted both times, according to published reports.

Tackett faces charges of rape, intimidating witnesses, aggravated indecent assault, making terroristic threats, unlawful restraint, possessing a weapon, and sexual assault.

Authorities said Tackett met the woman during a real estate open house. About a week and half later she was showing him a house on Seidle Road when police say he pinned her down, told her he had a gun and raped her repeatedly.

Tackett threatened to kill the woman. He ordered her to answer questions about her family, recited her address, and threatened to kill her and her family if she reported the incident, police said.

Tackett used a fake name when he contacted the woman but she found a photo on the state’s Megan’s Law sex offender registry that looked similar to the man she said raped her, police said.

A Neshannock Township policeman saw the picture, which was not Tackett’s. He realized it looked like Tackett, with whom he’d dealt before.

The policeman showed the woman Tackett’s picture, and she confirmed it was him.

Leslie is trying to have that identification, and any subsequent courtroom identifications of Tackett suppressed in the case. He said showing the picture outside a lineup was “unduly suggestive.” A hearing is scheduled for Jan. 6 on that motion.

In a later state police lineup, the woman said she was “100 percent sure” it was Tackett who raped her, police said.

She also identified Tackett’s car, and was able to point it out from a block away while driving through West Pittsburg with her husband, police said.

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