Murder case acquittals leave some crimes unresolved

Katie Smolen, The Tribune-Democrat, Johnstown, Pa.
·2 min read

Aug. 15—EBENSBURG, Pa. — Authorities in Cambria County have brought charges in a number of cases over the years in which the suspects were later acquitted by juries and additional charges were never filed.

Here are several recent cases that remain unresolved:

—Richard Dowey, 20, of Carrolltown, was found shot to death on Nov. 26, 1989, in the bed of a Spangler woman. Donald Kelly was convicted of the murder, but was acquitted after a second trial by an out-of-county jury.

—Stephen Holmes, 20, had been shot in the head and his body had been left in a wooded area of Lower Yoder Township in September 1992. Holmes' body had been decaying for two weeks when he was found and dental records were needed to identify his body. The killing was believed to be connected to a Jamaican drug cartel.

Dwayne Andrews was charged in the case and acquitted in 1995.

—Deanna Horner, 27, was found dead in the basement of a vacant Lorain Borough home in December 1996 — almost two weeks after she had last been seen on Dec. 1. Horner died of blows to the head.

Richard Alan Smith, the business partner of her husband Ed, had told authorities that Horner drove him to his house to get car keys after he locked himself out of his car, then dropped him off and left to connect a computer at a steel mill.

Deanna Horner's van was found at a mall with her purse and briefcase still inside.

Then-Assistant District Attorney Patrick Kiniry said that Smith was charged after parts of his story did not check out. He was later found not guilty by a jury.

—Jamil Gray, 37, was shot multiple times and killed in a downtown Johnstown alley on June 28, 2013. Dante L. Herring was charged with the fatal shooting and was acquitted by a jury in 2017.

—Tavion C. Williamson, 18, was shot dead on Dec. 3, 2017, in the Hornerstown section of the city. Ethan Williams was charged in the killing, but was later acquitted by a jury.