Jury finds Belle Vernon man guilty in Rostraver road rage killing

A Westmoreland County jury after more than two hours of deliberations Thursday night convicted a Belle Vernon man of third-degree murder for a road rage killing nearly three years ago in Rostraver.

Prosecutors contended Anthony Hairston, 29, was guilty of the first-degree murder and the intentional killing of 59-year-old Holly Vadella as she drove home from a New Year’s Eve visit with her mother.

Assistant District Attorney Leo Ciaramitaro said Hairston now faces up to 40 years in prison for third-degree murder, which is killing that is not premeditated but done with malice.

Hairston is expected to be sentenced early next year.

In addition to the murder count, jurors also convicted Hairston of two weapons offenses, tampering with evidence and drug possession.

Vadella’s family members declined to comment as they left the courtroom Thursday night.

Hairston earlier this year rejected deal to plead guilty to third-degree murder and other related counts in exchange for a 25-to-50-year prison sentence.

Defense attorney Brian Aston argued at trial that Hairston’s girlfriend was the shooter and asked jurors to render a not guilty verdict.

Earlier Thursday, state police ballistics expert Cpl. Creighton Callas testified he was unable to match mutilated bullet fragments found near the victim inside her clothing and vehicle where her body was found.

“The bullets were not marked well, and the gun did not produce enough marks,” Callas testified during the third day of Hairston’s homicide trial. “I cannot match (them to) or eliminate the gun that was used to fire those rounds.”

Prosecutors contend Vadella was shot twice. Witnesses testified Hairston became annoyed as he drove behind Vadella’s slow-moving vehicle and grew more upset as it drifted into his lane of travel during an attempt to pass.

Callas testified the bullets that struck Vadella could have been fired by any of about a dozen brands of pistol, including the weapon police seized the next day from Hairston’s girlfriend.

Shaquala L. Poole, 32, of Uniontown, who police said was Hairston’s longtime romantic partner, previously testified Hairston drove her and two other women to celebrate New Year’s at Sweeney’s Cafe in Rostraver.

During that trip, Hairston lowered her passenger’s side window and fired into Vadella’s vehicle, Poole testified.

Jurors saw a compilation of security videos culled from local businesses and homes along Route 201 that appeared to show both Vadella’s red SUV followed by Poole’s white Chevy Traverse, which police said was driven by Hairston.

Rostraver police Sgt. Daniel Cope said the videos revealed five minutes of travel by Vadella followed by Hairston, and what he testified was the sound of two gunshots.

Westmoreland County Detective Ray Dupilka told jurors Poole was confronted with the allegations the day after the shooting outside a home in Belle Vernon. She initially claimed she heard but did not see Hairston fire the weapon.

She later told investigators he was the shooter.

“Initially she said she didn’t see a gun and she asked if someone was hurt but I told her no, someone had been killed. Her (Poole’s) demeanor changed, and she said she was going to be sick,” Dupilka testified. “We spent of a lot of time trying to calm her down.”

The suspected murder weapon, along with cocaine and drug paraphernalia, were found in a bag police said Poole had prior to her being questioned. Additional drugs were found inside the residence.

Poole was charged a week later with conspiracy, tampering with evidence and drug possession. The case against her is pending.

DNA from Poole and Hairston were found on the suspected murder weapon, according to state police scientist Patrice Ferlan, the prosecution’s final witness in the case.