Jeannette teen seeks transfer of attempted homicide case to juvenile court

The lawyer for a Jeannette teen awaiting trial on charges that he attempted to kill two men in a shooting last year says the case should be prosecuted in juvenile court.

Khalil Myers was 16 when he was charged in connection with a shooting on Oct. 21, 2020, in Jeannette that injured two men. He is charged as an adult with two counts of attempted homicide, aggravated assault and other offenses.

“Both defendant and the public would benefit greatly from the hands-on, intensive treatment that can provided through the juvenile system,” defense attorney Adam Gorzelsky wrote in court documents filed Wednesday.

Gorzelsky said Myers, now 17, has a prior involvement in the juvenile court system, where he proved amenable to treatment. If adjudicated in juvenile court, Myers would be supervised until his 21st birthday in May 2025, his lawyer said.

Austin Mathias, 19, whose last known address is Crabtree, and Anthony Bittinger, 21, of Greensburg, were wounded in the shooting, police said.

The incident took place at the South Third Street home of Mathias’ mother following verbal altercation among Myers and his alleged victims.

Police said Myers claimed he visited the Mathias home, where he was antagonized by the two shooting victims and others present in the residence. According to court records, Myers told police he went to a second-floor bedroom, retrieved a 9 mm handgun and fired as Mathias and Bittinger brandished their weapons and threatened to shoot.

Myers told investigators he knew that he had struck Mathias and Bittinger, then he fled with two friends and disposed of the handgun, according to court documents.