Thread: Man (illegal) charged with killing three at after-hours club

Originally Posted by AltoidSteph

Angry, Drunk, off his meds, depressed...... none of that constitutes killing anyone, otherwise a lot of us would have killed hundreds before lunch time.

Amen to that.

Ditto.

This is my personal philosophy:

1. We were all made by God.
2. There are two types of people in the world:
a.) those who choose to do good, and
b.) those who choose to do bad.

I'm so tired of all the excuses for crimes. And how crimes are called "a mistake". Very seldom is that true.

Originally Posted by curiouspat

This is my personal philosophy:

1. We were all made by God.
2. There are two types of people in the world:
a.) those who choose to do good, and
b.) those who choose to do bad.

I'm so tired of all the excuses for crimes. And how crimes are called "a mistake". Very seldom is that true.

What bothers me maybe the most is the excuse that Padilla was molested as a child. I have dealt with hundreds (literally) of abused (physically and sexually) children with my job. They don't just grow up and murder people in cold blood.

I heard that closing arguments might happen today. Not sure how accurate that information is, though.

That's the buzz in the media Jenny. I havent heard from Barb yet. I know she wanted to hear the closing arguments. Ill try to confirm whats going on at lunch.

Originally Posted by AltoidSteph

That's the buzz in the media Jenny. I havent heard from Barb yet. I know she wanted to hear the closing arguments. Ill try to confirm whats going on at lunch.

I'm going to do a little court house investigating as well and try to see what's up.

http://www.tribune-democrat.com/siteSea ... 33823.html

Psychologist: Defendant could form intent to kill

By KATHY MELLOTT
The Tribune-Democrat

HOLLIDAYSBURG — The actions of a Cambria County man leading to a triple homicide showed he had plenty of time and the mental ability to form his intention to kill, a psychologist testified Monday.

“He had to move through time and space to the car, remove the gun under the seat, return to the front of the club, take aim and fire,” said Gerald Cook, a forensic and clinical psychologist testifying for the prosecution. “The elements are consistent with having the capacity to form specific intent to kill.”

Miguel Padilla, 26, of Gallitzin, has admitted to the Cumberland County jury through his attorney, Donald Speice, that he shot a handgun eight times into three men outside the United Veterans Club in Altoona on Aug. 28, 2005. Club owner Alfred Mignogna, bouncer Fred Rickabaugh and patron Stephen Heiss, all of Altoona, died.

The prosecution’s ability to convince the jury that Padilla had the mental ability to form the intent to kill could mean the difference between first- and third-degree murder convictions – and between a death sentence or life in prison.

The defense has claimed that alcohol and drug abuse marred Padilla’s thinking ability, as did the then-recent death of a friend and the fact that in the month prior to the shootings he neglected to take two drugs prescribed for panic attacks.

Padilla was portrayed by mental-health experts Monday as an angry man with a great deal of charm who is compulsive and needs to prove his masculinity.

“He’s charming, angry and bad-tempered at the same time,” said Dr. Stephen A. Ragusea, founder of the Meadows Clinic in State College, who testified for the defense.

Ragusea said the fact that Padilla had not taken two antidepressants for a month and the suicide of a friend a week earlier played little role in his actions.

Ragusea also said that Padilla’s lack of memory about the shootings is common for someone who has killed and cannot deal with the trauma of the act.

Five witnesses, including Padilla’s friend Marcellino Flores of Gallitzin, said they knew he used illegal drugs, including cocaine and crystal meth, and drank excessively. Yet none could testify that he had taken drugs or drank heavily in the days leading up to the murders.

Padilla’s brother, Oscar, testified Miguel visited his house the day of the shootings and borrowed a movie.

He learned of the shootings the next day from Miguel’s friend. “He said, ‘Our brother man is crazy. He just started shooting,’ ” Oscar Padilla said.

I'm hoping the jury is smart enough to see through the smoke screen the defense is throwing up. They can make all the excuses they want but they can't deny Padilla killed 3 people in cold blood. He deserves to be punished for the crime. If he had problems he should have dealt with them earlier, and it's still no excuse for murdering people.

He had to move through time and space to the car, remove the gun under the seat, return to the front of the club, take aim and fire,” said Gerald Cook, a forensic and clinical psychologist testifying for the prosecution. “The elements are consistent with having the capacity to form specific intent to kill.”

My point, exactly.

Boy, do I wish I was on this jury!

It's all up to the jury now.

http://www.wtajtv.com/news/local/3899031.html

CLOSING ARGUMENTS COMPLETE IN PADILLA TRIAL
Closing arguments have wrapped up in the Miguel Padilla murder trial. A Blair County jury now must decide what two psychologists could not agree on: whether Padilla had an intent to kill when he shot three people outside a social club where his friend was denied entry.

The 27-year old Padilla faces a possible death penalty if he's convicted of first-degree murder in the shootings outside the United Veterans Association Club in Altoona last August. Padilla's attorney does not deny the shootings, but says a history of drug abuse and child sex abuse left Padilla in a state where he did not form a legal intent to kill. A psychologist who testified for Padilla made that argument; a prosecution psychologist says Padilla shot the people simply because he didn't want to be pushed around.