Attempted murder counts were added to the list of charges against two Jeannette men accused of shooting a Greensburg resident nearly four years ago in his home.
Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Christopher Feliciani on Wednesday signed off on a request by prosecutors to amend the charges against Daishawn Rahiem Stikkel, 26, and Nathan Terrell Childs, 24, who police said broke into Iszak Dallar’s Highland Avenue home and shot him in the hip and knee.
Both men were originally charged with burglary, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and conspiracy in connection to the incident on March 12, 2016. Attempted murder counts against both men were rejected three times by District Judge James Falcon following preliminary hearings in 2017.
Feliciani overruled Falcon and agreed with prosecutors.
“Such amendment does not alter the factual scenario nor does it hinder or require any change in Mr. Stikkel’s or Mr. Childs’ defense strategy, especially in the light of the fact that Mr. Stikkel and Mr. Childs were previously notified of the commonwealth’s intentions to add this charge and the crime charged involves the same basic elements,” Feliciani wrote.
Police said Dallar, who was 27 at the time, claimed his attackers kicked in his front door and was shot as a female friend and his daughter were in a nearby bedroom. Dallar claimed he watched the men flee but did not immediately identify his attackers out of fear of his and his daughter’s safety. According to court records, six shell casings were found in the home along with five bullet holes in the walls and doorways.
Witnesses reported that Stikkel and Childs were angry at Dallar, who allegedly had assaulted a woman identified as Stikkel’s aunt and the mother of Childs’ child, investigators said.
In matching opinions, the judge on Wednesday also rejected defense bids to dismiss charges because of insufficient evidence as well as faulty search warrants obtained by investigators. The judge also denied requests from Stikkel and Childs to have separate trials.
The trial for both men has not been scheduled. They are both free on $100,000 bail.
