No Death Penalty Sought Against Soldier in Woman's Killing
ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) -- A Pennsylvania prosecutor says he won't seek the death penalty against a soldier accused of conspiring with his teenage girlfriend to kill her mother.
The Express-Times newspaper reports Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin said there are no factors supporting capital punishment in the case of 21-year-old Army Spc. Caleb Barnes.
Barnes and 14-year-old Jamie Silvonek were arraigned separately Wednesday in the March stabbing death of 54-year-old Cheryl Silvonek, who was killed in the driveway of her home near Allentown.
Prosecutors charged the teenager as an adult, citing text messages they said detailed her role. Defense attorney John Waldron wants the case sent back to juvenile court.
Barnes is from El Paso, Texas, but was stationed at Fort Meade, Maryland. His public defender hasn't returned phone messages seeking comment.
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