Closing arguments in Munhall murder trial focus on intent to kill

A prosecutor on Friday offered multiple arguments to back up her claim that Darion Abel made a conscious choice when he kicked in the door of his girlfriend’s Munhall home in 2018 and shot her 17 times.

Mental illness, though, played no role, she told jurors, countering the claims of Abel’s lawyer.

During a closing argument that ran longer than an hour, however, Allegheny County Assistant District Attorney Alexa Roberts asked jurors to use common sense when evaluating if Abel intended to kill when he fatally shot Miranda Grimm-Gilarski on Nov. 17, 2018.

“He kicked in that door because it was in his way,” Roberts told the panel as Abel’s trial in the Allegheny County Courthouse wound down. “But he wasn’t there to commit a burglary. He was there to commit a murder.”

Attorney Pat Thomassey, who represents Abel, argued his client’s ability to make decisions was “impaired” that day. In his opening statement he asked the jury to find Abel guilty but mentally ill.

“Does a normal person, who doesn’t have a mental health disorder, do what (Abel) did — go to the house, walk in, close his eyes, shoot, then leave and go directly to the police station?” Thomassey asked in his 12-minute closing argument. “Is that a person who doesn’t have a mental health issue?

Jurors deliberated for about three hours Friday but didn’t return a verdict. They will resume at 9 a.m. Monday.

Abel faces homicide, burglary and gun charges.

Roberts asked jurors to return a conviction on first-degree murder, which would indicate Abel had formed an intent to kill. That conviction would come with a mandatory life sentence without parole.

Thomassey is seeking a third-degree murder conviction that stipulates Abel had “diminished capacity” at the time of the shooting. If convicted of that, Abel could face up to 40 years in prison.

Shot at close range

The murder trial’s fifth day started with a psychiatrist’s testimony that in 2018 the shooter was able to make decisions and form an intent to kill.

The couple, who were involved in a rocky, yearslong relationship, had been arguing over text messages that morning, Roberts said.

At issue was a police citation for when Abel allegedly assaulted Grimm-Gilarski about three weeks before the shooting.

Abel then loaded nearly 20 bullets into a gun, put a second gun magazine in his pocket and drove to Grimm-Gilarski’s Louise Street home, Roberts said.

After kicking in the front door, Abel shot her 17 times, Roberts said.

An autopsy revealed three of the shots were fatal: two to the heart and one to the chest that traveled to her head and fractured her skull.

An autopsy revealed 40 different entry and exit wounds, Roberts said. The shots left soot marks on two wounds, indicating Abel shot Grimm-Gilarski in close range.

Roberts alleged that Abel shot his girlfriend as she fell to the floor, then stood above her and continued shooting.

Grimm-Gilarski was 19.

“The defendant did not stop firing,” Roberts said. “He shot at her. And he kept shooting until his gun was empty.”

Roberts said the victim’s name at least a dozen times over the course of her closing. Thomassey did not say her name at all.

Intent to kill?

Allegheny County Police charged Abel nearly seven years ago after finding Grimm-Gilarski dead in the living room of her house in the 1400 block of Munhall’s Louise Street.

Abel has been held without bail since then. His jury trial has been rescheduled about 20 times since 2019.

Munhall police Officer Jason Poniewaz was among several witnesses who testified earlier this week. Poniewaz told jurors Abel confessed to him in the police station’s parking lot when Abel drove there to turn himself in.

Grimm-Gilarski’s stepsister, who was 11 when the shooting occurred in front of her, also testified.

Bruce Wright, a board-certified psychiatrist the court recognized as an expert in his field, evaluated Abel last month. He said the defendant has no mental health diagnosis.

“It’s my opinion he was not suffering from a psychological disorder at the time of his offense,” Wright said.

Thomassey challenged Wright, pointing out a physician who testified as a defense witness said emotions and the circumstances of the day “impaired” Abel’s ability to make decisions.

“He had the capacity to form the intent to kill,” Wright responded.