Despite Castle Doctrine, Defendant is Convicted in Slaying
 

Doesn't make sense 'til you read the last paragraph.
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/lo...n_slaying.html
A PHILADELPHIA JUDGE said Wednesday he was convinced that a disabled, retired Marine was being attacked in the moments before he fatally stabbed a man last October, but he concluded that the stabbing was still a criminal act rather than self-defense.

Common Pleas Judge Benjamin Lerner then convicted Jonathan Lowe, 57, of voluntary manslaughter and possession of an instrument of crime. The judge found him not guilty of the more-serious charges of first- and third-degree murder.

Lowe, who wears a pacemaker and has survived two strokes and two heart surgeries, could face up to 12 1/2 to 25 years in prison when Lerner sentences him Aug. 16.

The case underscores how uncertain the claim of self-defense can be, even in a state that revised its "Castle Doctrine" last year to give an individual the right to use deadly force in self-defense anywhere in which a person has a legal right to be. The revised law also eliminated the duty to retreat before using that force. Lowe’s case was featured in March in a Daily News article about the revision of that doctrine.

The voluntary-manslaughter conviction means that Lowe committed the stabbing under provocation but that his actions were unreasonable, or imperfect self-defense, Lerner said.

"There are some unanswered questions in my mind about what happened here," Lerner said. "We will never know exactly how this incident began, and I don’t think we will ever know, 100 percent, when the stabbing began."

During the two-day nonjury trial, Lowe and his attorney, Samuel C. Stretton, argued that he acted in self-defense on the evening of Oct. 1, 2011, when he was jumped by Loren Manning Jr., 51, and at least two other men on Cecil B. Moore Avenue near Bouvier Street.

"When he had his hands around my neck, I pulled out my knife and started stabbing him," Lowe testified Wednesday.

Stretton noted that Lowe stayed at the scene and cooperated with police, believing himself to be the victim.

Stretton said case law barred him from introducing Manning’s 18 criminal convictions at trial because Lowe wasn’t aware of them and most of them were too old, the most recent from 2002. According to court records, Manning was awaiting trial for allegedly knocking out a woman’s teeth while robbing her two years ago Thursday.

Assistant D.A. Carolyn Naylor argued this week that Lowe had been the aggressor.

Lowe testified that he used a small, quick-open knife to stab Manning after being knocked to the ground and choked during a robbery attempt.

Two Temple University students said Manning was chasing Lowe and trying to hit him with a metal pole before he caught him. Manning then pinned Lowe to the ground, they said.

But both students said they did not see Lowe stab Manning while the two men were on the ground, nor after Manning got up and quickly collapsed from four stab wounds in his neck, thigh and back.

Naylor seized on inconsistencies between the testimonies of Lowe and the students, including where the stabbing took place. She argued that before the students came upon the struggle, Lowe stabbed Manning from behind before both men ended up on the ground.

She noted that two stab wounds were in Manning’s back. She also said Lowe showed intent to kill with malice because after Manning fell mortally wounded, Lowe taunted him and even tried to stab him some more.

Strike 1 for Lowe's attorney maybe? If you have me on the ground & I get to one of my blades your back could very well be in play.

Strikes 2 & 3 for Lowe's attorney. You're kidding, right? He couldn't still be recovering from a massive chemical dump on his system 'cause he just avoided getting murdered?

Wait, this is Philly?
:rolleyes:

"He still didn't deserve to die"
 

I don't understand why Lowe opted for a judge as opposed to a jury. Regardless, the prosecutor completely blows my mind here.

So, let's clarify this...

A group of 3 men, one armed with a metal pole who has a history of nearly 40 arrests with 2 dismissed murder charges and 18 convictions, can attack a disabled person (in this case it was a disabled Marine) and not deserve to die.

What was Mr. Lowe supposed to do? Was he supposed to wait for someone to call the police so they could investigate his own murder?

Either I'm missing something or this is completely FUBAR.

You missed this:

"She also said Lowe showed intent to kill with malice because after Manning fell mortally wounded, Lowe taunted him and even tried to stab him some more."

Interesting parallel here between the above assertion and the 'dont spike the football' angle.

I see that, now. Thanks for redirecting me. Had Lowe kept his cool after the attack I wonder if the prosecutor would continue to feel that the attacker didn't deserve to die.

That was not malice. It was Karma for finally screwing with the wrong disabled American.

So let me get this straight, three men attack an individual to rob him, he kills one of them and he's going to jail.

I personally don't care if he cut the guys head off and used it as a paperweight, they attacked him.

The story should have ended there and no charges should have been filed against the victim.

Philly has some very intellectually challenged attorneys & judges.

I guess you had to be there.

This is why people from my side of the state don't go into that part of the PA unless you have to.

Philadelphia has very different laws and ways of going about things then much of the rest of the state.

Lesson learned for all of us - if you start yanking on that trigger, keep yanking until the threat is down and out. Same/same for cutting. If you stop and then "go back for some more"....you may not like the results.

The problem is that most folks find it a tad difficult to control their emotions/anger under the influence of a deadly force encounter. Hopefully there's something appealable there and it turns out OK for the guy.

In Texas - there are still many places where the "He needed killin'" defense works. Sadly, it is disappearing elsewhere in this Nation.