Trial set for Greensburg man accused of providing fatal overdose to nephew
A Greensburg man accused of providing his nephew with the fentanyl-laced drug that killed him in October 2021 is scheduled to go on trial in Westmoreland County Court next week.
Jury selection before Westmoreland County Judge Michael Stewart is scheduled to begin Monday in the trial of Michael A. Rebosky, 59, who is charged with drug delivery resulting in death and two counts each of possession and possession with intent to deliver. Testimony could begin on Tuesday.
Rebosky, who remains in Westmoreland County Prison, is accused of providing his nephew, Christopher Rebosky, 38, of Edgewood, Ohio, with the stamp bag of heroin laced with fentanyl on Oct. 22, 2021, at an apartment in the city’s Eastmont Estates. Christopher Rebosky was found unresponsive and was administered Naloxone before being taken to a hospital, where he died two days later.
Stewart said he will rule on Friday whether he can give the jury instructions that Rebosky displayed a reckless disregard for life in allegedly providing his nephew with the drug laced with fentanyl.
Assistant District Attorney Steven Reddy argued Thursday before Stewart that the judge should be permitted to instruct the jury that there was reckless disregard for the possibility of causing his nephew’s death. Fentanyl is inherently dangerous, so giving someone a drug with fentanyl is reckless, Reddy said.
“I liken it to giving a loaded gun to a child,” Reddy told the judge.
Defense attorney Emily Smarto countered that the judge can’t give the jury that instruction because the state statute requires that the drug was delivered to intentionally cause death.
Reddy also claimed that it is relevant to the case that the jury hear that Rebosky allegedly sold cocaine to a woman, the same day that Christopher Rebosky was provided the heroin. There is ample evidence to allow the jury to hear the story, Reddy said.
Smarto said that she believed that the alleged drug deal before Rebosky’s fatal overdose is not relevant to the crime of drug delivery resulting in death. It would be “unfairly prejudicial,” Smarto said.
Stewart said he may need to provide cautionary instruction to the jury on the matter.
Joe Napsha is a TribLive reporter covering Irwin, North Huntingdon and the Norwin School District. He also writes about business issues. He grew up on Neville Island and has worked at the Trib since the early 1980s. He can be reached at jnapsha@triblive.com.
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