Penn Hills man gets life in prison for 2017 Jeannette murder
An Allegheny County man was sentenced Wednesday to serve life in prison without parole for a 2017 fatal shooting in Jeannette.
Darrelle Tolbert-McGhee, 31, of Penn Hills, was convicted in January of first-degree murder for the April 13, 2017, daylight shooting of Michael Wilson on Clay Avenue. Police said Wilson, 32, was shot nine times.
Common Pleas Court Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio imposed the mandatory life sentence along with a concurrent five-to-10 year prison term for a related weapons offense.
Tolbert-McGhee did not speak during his brief hearing, but defense attorney Tim Dawson said his client maintains his innocence and will appeal.
“He vows to fight, and he’s adamant that he’s wrongfully convicted,” Dawson said.
Dawson argued at trial that Tolbert-McGhee was in Orlando at the time of the shooting and that his now dead twin brother committed the murder. Dwayne Tolbert-McGhee was gunned down in Wilkinsburg 13 months after the Jeannette shooting.
Police said Wilson was shot and killed after he and Tolbert-McGhee argued in front of a Dollar General store in downtown Jeannette.
Prosecutors contended Tolbert-McGhee’s alibi was unreliable and that witnesses placed him in Jeannette. Jurors saw video from surveillance cameras that appeared to show the fatal shooting and several people testified they knew both Tolbert-McGhee brothers and were able to tell them apart.
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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