Monessen man offered plea for role in July 2017 shooting in city street
A Monessen man could serve up to six years in prison if he accepts a plea deal for his role in a shootout in which police say he was wounded and more than 20 rounds were fired on a city street.
Delaney Huggins, 31, was originally charged with attempted murder and other offenses in connection with the July 2017 incident involving the exchange of gunfire with another man, identified by prosecutors as Steven Womack, 25, also of Monessen. The shooting occurred along 10th Street.
Because no witnesses came forward to testify against Huggins and Womack and each denied involvement in the shooting, prosecutors dismissed the attempted murder charges. The remaining charges against them include weapons offenses and counts of reckless endangerment.
“There are evidentiary issues,” Assistant District Attorney Allen Powanda said.
As a result, Huggins, a convicted felon who is barred from possessing a weapon, could receive a prison sentence of about three to six years under a proposed deal brokered in court Tuesday by Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Christopher Feliciani. Huggins is expected to return to court Thursday for a potential guilty plea.
Huggins, according to police, was treated at a local hospital for a gunshot wound to the hip
Surveillance video of the shooting shows a man police identified as Womack firing shots but Powanda said it does not show the other person involved.
According to court records police found 18 fired shell casings from an AK-47 and a cell phone official said was linked to Huggins at the shooting scene. Womack, police said, can be seen on the video firing what appeared to be a revolver.
A car parked along the street was riddled with bullets, police said.
Defense attorney Jack Mandarino said it is unlikely Huggins, who has been in jail since his arrest, would be convicted of any charge related to the shooting.
“Monessen people don’t want to step forward. It’s over when it’s over,” Mandarino said.
Womack’s trial is scheduled for July.
Rich Cholodofsky is a TribLive reporter covering Westmoreland County government, politics and courts. He can be reached at rcholodofsky@triblive.com.
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