By Marcia Moore
The Daily Item
June 17, 2008 07:49 am
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SUNBURY — Richard C. Curran is not disputing he shot his former wife in Shamokin on Aug. 24, 2005, but his defense attorney said Monday it will be up to a Northumberland County jury to decide his degree of guilt.
Karl Rominger, of Carlisle, told the jury of six men and six women that they will have to “set aside fear, prejudice and the ugliness of it” in determining the degree of culpability during a brief opening statement at Curran’s homicide trial in Northumberland County Court.
Curran, 34, of Shamokin, could face the death penalty if convicted of first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Tina Curran, 31, of Mount Carmel, who died after being shot seven times in the parking lot at Shamokin Community Hospital, where she worked as a nurse.
“You’ll have to determine how strong is the circumstantial case for first-degree (intentional homicide) or third-degree murder,” Rominger said, asking the jury to pay attention to the short interaction between the couple on the morning of the shooting.
Curran’s trial has been delayed for months after he was deemed several times to be mentally incompetent.
Rominger, who said Curran is delusional, had planned to present an insanity defense, but President Judge Robert B. Sacavage ruled two weeks ago that diminished capacity by an irresistible impulse is not a legal defense in Pennsylvania.
District Attorney Anthony Rosini laid out his case by describing in a 20-minute opening statement a confrontation between the Currans an hour before the shooting and statements from several witnesses who identified Richard Curran as being at the scene of the murder.
At about 10 a.m. on Aug. 24, 2005, Rosini said, Curran showed up at his former wife’s home and confronted her about increased child support payments he was recently ordered to provide for their two daughters, then 4 and 8.
Curran, who earlier in the month took a job as a police officer in Bernville, Berks County, was upset about having to pay more and demanded his former wife go to the courthouse that morning and ask for it to be lowered.
A “terrified” Mrs. Curran phoned her boyfriend of 18 months, Jesse James of Mount Carmel, and told him Curran was in her home and wouldn’t leave.
James testified that on his way to Mrs. Curran’s home, he stopped at the Mount Carmel Police Department and asked for help “because I was tired of dealing” with Curran.
From the witness stand, James frequently glared at Curran, who wore a dark suit, tie and white sneakers.
James described Curran as “hateful” toward Mrs. Curran, frequently harassing and calling her degrading and vulgar names, sometimes in front of the children.
Mrs. Curran was visibly frightened by her former husband’s demands to lower child support the morning of her killing, James said.
Mount Carmel Police Chief Brian Shurock came to the house and suggested Curran be arrested for trespassing, but Mrs. Curran declined to press charges.
Rosini said Shurock asked Curran who his supervisor in Bernville was and said he planned to report his behavior.
The prosecutor said Curran turned toward his former wife and said, “I hope you’re happy now. I’m going to lose my job.”
About an hour later, Mrs. Curran was gunned down in the Shamokin Community Hospital parking lot as she walked into work.
She died about an hour later after being flown to Geisinger Medical Center, Danville, with massive blood loss from seven gunshot wounds to the neck, chest, leg and hand.
Curran was arrested on suspicion of murder about eight hours later at the Canadian border in Niagara Falls, N.Y.
In his vehicle was a 40-caliber gun issued to him by the Bernville police department, the same weapon later determined to have been used in Mrs. Curran’s slaying, Rosini said.
Also in the car were hundreds of rounds of ammunition, a second gun, knives, pepper spray and $2,600 in cash.
The prosecution case is expected to take three days. Testimony resumes this morning.
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