Derry Township man convicted of attempted murder

A Derry Township man told a judge on Tuesday he just wanted to scare a man who he believed had started a fire near his camper when he fired a series of “warning shots” across a rural field.

But at least one round struck Jonathan David Corey in the buttocks as he fled, prosecutors said.

Edward B. Hart, 60, was convicted of the attempted murder of Corey, as well as two counts each of aggravated assault and simple assault in connection with the shooting May 17 at a property along Route 982 near Blairsville. The conviction came at the end of a nonjury trial before Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Christopher Feliciani.

Hart testified he fired as many as five or six shots but had no intention to hit Corey, who he said came to his door around 3:30 a.m. Hart said he told Corey, who he recognized as someone he hadn’t seen in 15 years, to leave.

Minutes later Hart noticed a disturbance outside and saw a pile of his belongs were set on fire.

“I just wanted to scare him out of there,” Hart testified. “I was not aiming at Mr. Corey, because if I was trying to hit him, I would have hit him.”

Police said the fire caused about $900 in property damage.

Hart gave a statement to police and was arrested days after the shooting.

State police troopers testified Corey identified Hart as the man who shot him.

Corey is charged with reckless burning, trespassing and loitering. He did not testify during the trial and his whereabouts are unknown.

The judge on Tuesday issued an arrest warrant for Corey after he failed to appear for his nonjury trial. He had been free on a $10,000 unsecured bond.

Defense attorney Allen Roth argued prosecutors did not prove Hart was guilty of attempted murder and aggravated assault.

“He would have to have intent,” Roth said. “He shot into a car and he wasn’t trying to hit anyone.”

Hart has been in jail since his arrest in May. As a result of the conviction, he faced at least five years in prison under state sentencing guidelines, according to Assistant District Attorney Pete Caravello.

The judge ordered Hart to serve just less than a year in jail, with a maximum of nearly two years behind bars.

“The sentence is outside the guidelines because the victim did not want to testify,” Feliciani said.

The judge said Hart will not receive credit for time served since his arrest. Feliciani ordered Hart complete 100 hours of community service once paroled and serve two additional years on probation.