Lawyer says attempted murder charges against East Huntingdon man a result of police cover-up
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The lawyer for an East Huntingdon man wounded in a shootout with police said Wednesday attempted murder charges filed against her client are nothing more than an attempt by officers to cover up what she called a botched investigation.
Defense attorney Jill Devine said James R. Miller Jr., 62, rejected a prosecution deal that called for him to plead guilty in exchange for a 15-to-30-year prison sentence. The decision came at a court appearance before Westmoreland County Common Pleas Judge Scott Mears.
Miller, who was wounded in a January shootout with police, is awaiting trial on 21 counts, including multiple charges of attempted homicide.
Police contend Miller fired shots from an assault rifle as two state police troopers investigated earlier reports of gunfire near a home on Route 819 across from West Overton Village. Following a standoff outside his home Miller was shot in the chest during the exchange of gunfire with police.
“They don’t have the evidence,” Devine said in explaining Miller’s rejection of the plea offer. “His position is that it’s a complete fabrication to cover up for police error.”
During previous court hearings, officers testified they approached Miller’s home Jan. 28 as part of what they said was a routine canvassing of the area based on the earlier complaint of stray bullets being fired in the area. Police have said they believed Miller was shooting at a vehicle on his property and that a bullet struck a nearby home.
Investigators claim Miller did not respond to repeated knocks on his front door and was spotted through a window as he grabbed a rifle and went outside on the front porch as loud music played inside the home. Miller fired two rounds away from the troopers as he exited the house, police contend.
“They say he pivoted towards them, but he didn’t do that and the evidence will show that. They (police) were supposed to be investigating a stray bullet in the attic, but they didn’t do that,” Devine said.
Prosecutors said Miller confessed to his role in the shooting while being questioned by police in a hospital two days after the incident.
Assistant District Attorney Anthony Iannamorelli said Miller has until Jan. 2 to reverse course and accept the plea deal. His trial is currently scheduled to begin Jan. 6.
Prosecutors said that without a plea deal, they will ask that Miller be subjected to mandatory 20-to-40-year prison sentences if he is convicted at trial of two counts of assault with a gun against police officers.