Judge: Jury to decide self-defense claim in Greensburg shooting

A Westmoreland County judge has ruled there is no basis to dismiss attempted murder and other charges against a man wounded in a downtown shootout in Greensburg earlier this year.

Following a hearing Monday, Common Pleas Judge Christopher Feliciani said a defense theory suggesting Evan Curley, 23, acted in self-defense after an argument inside Rialto Bar and Bistro in late January should be decided by a jury.

Curley is charged with attempted murder, three counts of aggravated assault and reckless endangerment after a bystander was wounded by the gunfire. His attorney sought dismissal of the charges, claiming there was no evidence to prove Curley intended to kill or injure another person.

“There was a bar fight and then there is a cooling off period when no one was in imminent danger, but your client goes to his vehicle to get a firearm,” Feliciani said, addressing defense attorney Brent McCune.

Witnesses testified in a pretrial hearing that Curley and another alleged shooter, Stevin “Twogunz” German, 27, of Uniontown, engaged in an argument inside the bar and that both men went to their vehicles to retrieve guns. When they returned to the vicinity of the bar, just across from the Westmoreland County Courthouse on West Otterman Street, they each fired at one another.

Police said German fired seven shots, hitting Curley two times. Another round shot out a glass panel in a raised walkway over Pennsylvania Avenue linking the courthouse annex and extension buildings. Investigators said Curley fired two shots, including one that wounded a pedestrian in the area.

McCune argued Curley, who has lived in Greensburg since 2018, was a victim in the case with a Second Amendment right to carry a firearm and protect himself and his friends. Curley was licensed to carry a concealed gun, according to his lawyer.

“You can’t speculate he attempted to kill anyone. There is no evidence of that. There is evidence of a shooting and evidence the defendant was shot at first,” McCune said. “There is a shooting on the record and gunfire is on the record, but it doesn’t mean it’s a crime.”

Assistant District Attorney Jim Lazar characterized Curley’s actions as one of a vigilante and disputed that his constitutional right to carry a firearm was an issue.

“It’s not your Second Amendment right to shoot someone at a bar you had a fight with,” Lazar said.

Curley has been in jail without bond since his arrest days after the Jan. 30 shooting. The judge on Monday set a $250,000 straight cash bond for him, requiring he remain in the county on house arrest if he is able to post the cash needed for his release.

Earlier this year the judge set German’s bond at $250,000, and he remains in jail to await trial, which is scheduled to begin in October.