Judge limits taxpayer funds for father's death penalty defense in New Kensington slaying

A Westmoreland County judge said she will limit defense spending of taxpayer funds for the pending trial of a Brackenridge man who faces a potential death sentence in connection with the alleged killing of his 9-year-old son.

Common Pleas Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio said Wednesday excessive costs incurred by public defenders who represent Jean Charles already exceed budgetary limits for all court-paid expert witnesses.

“I felt I needed to limit it,” Bilik-DeFazio said during a court hearing in which she announced she will reject efforts by Charles’ lawyers to have the murder case against him dismissed based on violations of the state’s speedy trial rights law.

Charles, 42, was charged with first-degree murder, abuse of a corpse and other offenses involving the May 2022 death of his son, Azure Charles. According to police, the boy was strangled, dragged over an embankment and hidden under lawn furniture near his East Ken Manor home in New Kensington.

Prosecutors contend Charles was allowed by his former wife to watch their son and three daughters in defiance of the court orders that barred him from having contact with the children.

Charles previously pleaded guilty to assaulting the boy in 2019 and was charged with doing so again in November 2021, according to court records.

Luella Elien, 32, of New Kensington, the boy’s mother, was charged in 2022 with aggravated assault, child endangerment and hindering the prosecution in connection with allegations she knew about the court order barring Charles from having contact with her son but allowed him to stay in her home.

The case against Elien, who officials said is cooperating with prosecutors, is pending. She is free on $50,000 bail.

Prosecutors said they will seek the death penalty against Charles if he is convicted in his son’s death.

Westmoreland County public defenders hired Insight Mitigation, a private Pittsburgh-based firm, to assist in preparing a defense to argue Charles should not be sentenced to death should his trial end in a conviction of first-degree murder.

According to the county’s court administration office, Insight Mitigation has so far been paid nearly $35,000 for its work on the Charles case. Deputy Court Administrator Pam Neiderhiser said just $20,000 was budgeted for the county to pay all expert witnesses throughout 2024.

The judge in late June started reviewing expert bills in Charles’ case and said she will approve specific payments for required work. The company’s pay will be limited to only work deemed necessary for the defense of Charles.

“Mr. Charles is entitled to a defense but not carte blanche. I want to be more efficient with the spending,” Bilik-DeFazio said.

Assistant Public Defender Mike Garofalo said the defense will continue preparing potential mitigation testimony and expects this month to file pretrial motions challenging the evidence and prosecution’s theory of the case.

Charles has been in jail without bond since his arrest in September 2022.

Defense attorneys sought to have the case dismissed. They argued that prosecution delays in turning over evidence violated Charles’ speedy trial rights. State law requires prosecutors to bring to trial jailed defendants within six months of their arrest.

Bilik-DeFazio said in court Wednesday she will deny the defense motion to dismiss the case on those grounds.

No trial date has been set.