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Broome DA could seek death penalty in slaying

THE TARSIA CASE

The three men accused of gunning down Broome County Sheriff's Deputy Kevin J. Tarsia on Thursday could be back in court as early as this afternoon.

Town of Kirkwood Justice Benjamin Weingartner said Sunday he will meet with a capital defender from Albany at 11 a.m. to determine who will represent Jeffrey A. Nabinger Jr. and David Sweat. The men, both 22, are charged with first-degree murder, a felony, in the shooting death of Tarsia, 36.

If attorneys are assigned, Weingartner said, he might summon the three to court for a meeting about noon.

A capital defender is involved because first-degree murder is a capital offense. That means if the men are convicted of the charge, District Attorney Gerald F. Mollen could ask jurors to sentence the men to death.

Mollen could not be reached for comment Sunday.

A county public defender, also scheduled to be at today's 11 a.m. meeting, will represent Shawn J. Devaul, 23. He is charged with third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a felony.

Devaul, Nabinger and Sweat were arraigned before Weingartner Saturday night.

Tarsia's brother Thomas, 44, said the arrests have given him some peace of mind. But, he said, nothing will help him get over what happened to his younger brother.

"What they did to him isn't human," Thomas Tarsia said Sunday evening. "I want all three of them to get the death penalty."

He said he believes Devaul, who sheriff's officials said was a bystander during the shooting, had a chance to stop it.

Devaul's family members said they hope for answers about the shooting today in court. They said they know nothing about the pre-dawn events that left Tarsia lying with 15 bullet wounds in Kirkwood's Grange Hall Park, and led to the arrest of Devaul and his two friends.

Devaul's half-sister, Dawn Edwards, 35, said she has not seen Devaul since police swooped in and arrested him Saturday near her Village of Greene home. She said Devaul was walking to the store with his girlfriend, Brandi Decker, 21, and the couple's 5-month-old daughter.

Decker described the arrest.

"We went to get pizza, and Tylenol for our daughter," Decker said. She and Devaul were pushing daughter Angel in a stroller, when they were surrounded by police.

"They had me up against the wall, and him up against the wall. My baby was in the middle of the street," Decker said.

Edwards said she saw the arrest from her front porch.

"I didn't know what was going on," she said. She said Devaul had not told her or his family about the deputy's death. She said she learned of details from police.

The three men had allegedly used a stolen pickup truck to steal guns in the burglary of Mess's Fireworks, a Great Bend, Pa., business. The three were transferring the weapons to a vehicle in the park when Tarsia apparently interrupted them, Broome County Sheriff David E. Harder has said.

"We're all in turmoil," Edwards said of her family's response to Devaul's arrest. "I'm just trying to figure out what happened."

Edwards described Devaul as a mild-mannered boy who had drifted from house to house since he graduated from Binghamton High School. She said he had been laid off from a temporary agency a few months ago but had expected to return to work today.

Edwards said Devaul has a 21-year-old sister in Binghamton. Edwards, Devaul and the younger sister were raised by a single mother. Edwards described their childhood as "normal" and said Devaul had never been in serious trouble at school or at home.

Edwards said she has known Nabinger and Sweat for many years. Although Nabinger and Sweat had been sentenced as teen-agers to intensive supervision probation for various burglary charges, Edwards said she cannot believe they killed a deputy.

"I've known them since they were little boys," she said.

Sweat, who lives on Foley Road in Kirkwood, was the first man arrested Saturday in connection with the killing, Undersheriff Gerald W. Kellar said. Authorities took Sweat into custody as he drove in Kirkwood.

Sweat's neighbors said they believe he lived in the two-story, white house at 300 Foley Road with at least four other people. Neighbors said they witnessed many cars driving in and out of the property every day, but never saw criminal behavior.

"They kept to themselves," neighbor Heather Wilmarth said.

Another woman said news of the shooting had frightened people in the normally placid neighborhood.

"It makes you nervous," said Catherine Contro, who was visiting her parents Sunday on Foley Road. "I'm glad they caught them."

BY KELLY GRIFFITH
Press & Sun-Bulletin