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

Originally Posted by jazznuts699

--not sure how I feel about the verdict of death -- but at least he'll be in solitary confinement for the next 20 years of appeals... maybe that will give him something to think about...

Mike

Yes, it's unfortunate that he won't have the opportunity to be another inmate's girlfriend. Too bad he can't have the death penalty and be with the general prison population. Oh yeah, and be housed at SCI-Huntingdon.

Been thinking, death penalty might not be so bad after all. When this all happened it was brought to the attention of the PA lawmakers. They won't stand for all his appeals and the Mexican government crying about the verdict. Wonder if they gave him triple death sentences or just a single death sentence. PA has a website that has all inmates housed in what jail and they even have one for death row. I will have to look that up when he gets sent to jail or if anyone else knows let me know. If an inmate gets more than one death sentence they come up for execution alot faster than a single death sentence.

http://www.tribune-democrat.com

Padilla handed death sentence
By KATHY MELLOTT
The Tribune-Democrat


HOLLIDAYSBURG— A jury took four hours Thursday to decide that a Gallitzin man should be put to death for the August 2005 shooting deaths of three Altoona men.

Miguel Padilla, unflinching, kept his eyes directed toward the front of the courtroom as the sentences were read for the murders of Alfred Mignogna, Fred Rickabaugh and Stephen Heiss.

Members of Padilla’s family – including his mother, Maria Brauns of Gallitzin – initially began to cry but became somber and stared forward. Brauns on Wednesday apologized to the families for her son’s actions that night outside a private Altoona club.

Padilla’s girlfriend Amanda Bianconi – the mother of his youngest child, Miguel Padilla Jr. – wept openly and clutched Brauns.

The families of the victims were tearful but otherwise showed no emotion.

Brauns, Bianconi, Padilla’s youngest brother Christian and a handful of others were spirited away from the courthouse by a representative of the Mexican consulate out of Philadelphia.

Miguel Padilla, 26, is an illegal Mexican alien who has been in this country since age 9.

Members of the victims’ families had little to say after the capital punishment decisions.

“There are no winners here,” said Michael Mignogna, son of one of the victims. “Justice was served.”

Rickabaugh’s son, Fred, said he was surprised at the verdict and had braced himself for a life sentence.

“I do feel a sense of vindication,” he said. “But at the same time, I feel sad. It’s not as easy as I thought it would be. He has family, too,” he said.

Chelsey Boese, a cousin and close friend of Heiss, said she never believed any of the defense arguments in the weeklong case.

“I don’t think the stress syndrome or the blackouts he is (supposed) to have make you go out and kill people,” the 17-year-old said. “Steve was a great person and he was a hero.”

Blair County District Attorney Rich Consiglio saw little satisfaction in seeing more death, but said Padilla’s actions validated the jury decision.

“This was not the guy who in one night went crazy because of child abuse, alcohol or drugs. This guy may not be the worst of the worst, but he’s down there someplace,” he said after the verdict.

Death penalty attorney Ed Blanarik said he went beyond proving that Padilla has plenty of redeeming qualities and should be allowed to live.

“In my opinion, the mitigating factors far outweighed the aggravating. I’m very disappointed and saddened that the tragedy of last year is being compounded now by the death of my client,” he said.

In his closing statement, Blanarik told the jury that life in a prison is life.

“I don’t mean to be blunt, but the only way Miguel Padilla will get out of prison is in a box,” he argued.

Efforts by the Mexican government to get involved in the case were thwarted by Judge Hiram Carpenter and the state Supreme Court.

Public Defender Donald Speice said he had an uphill battle in defending Padilla and lashed out at the Mexican government, which battled to get him removed from the case.

Appeals are expected to keep Padilla’s case tied up in the courts for years.
A separate trial is expected next month on charges that Padilla as an illegal alien possessed a handgun in the murders. Carpenter ruled earlier that the out-of-county homicide jury could not know of Padilla’s citizenship status.

http://www.altoonamirror.com/News/artic ... cleID=4805

Friday, September 15, 2006 — Time: 1:37:06 AM EST

Killer faces death

By Phil Ray, pray@altoonamirror.com


HOLLIDAYSBURG — A jury Thursday recommended death sentences for Miguel A. Padilla of Gallitzin for a shooting at the United Veterans Association last year that killed three Altoona men.

Unlike Tuesday when family and friends applauded the jury’s first-degree murder verdicts, the reaction to the three death sentences was subdued.

“There are no winners here. Justice was served,” said Mike Mignogna, son of former school teacher Alfred Mignogna, 61, one of the victims from the Aug. 28, 2005, shooting.

Fredrick Rickabaugh Jr. will remember his father, Fredrick Sr., a doorman at the UVA Club, as a hero, “The wisest man I’ve ever known.”

“My father’s death was vindicated,” he said.

But, he said, “Basically, there was a little sadness involved.”

Nobody can rejoice at the imposition of the death penalty, he said.

“I am glad. He [Padilla] deserved it,” said Chelsey Boese, 17, first cousin of Stephen M. Heiss, 28, a prison guard.

Heiss and his girlfriend, Barbara Zindel, were walking into the UVA Club Aug. 28 when Padilla opened fire with a .45-caliber Sig Sauer handgun.

At the first sound of shooting, Heiss, a former Marine, shoved Zindel to the concrete while taking a bullet that pieced his heart.

“He was a great person. ... He was a hero,” Boese said.

Padilla had little reaction to the jury’s recommendations, not even looking at his family as he was taken back to Blair County Prison to await formal sentencing set for Nov. 29.

Padilla’s Altoona girlfriend became emotionally distraught when the death sentences were announced, holding her stomach, seemingly becoming ill.

Other friends of the Padilla family sobbed.

The family left the courthouse quickly with Fernanado Trevino, a representative of the Mexican consulate in Philadelphia.

Padilla is a Mexican national who came to America with his mother and brothers in 1989 to escape an abusive father.

He is an illegal alien, a fact Judge Hiram A. Carpenter refused to let into the trial for fear it would prejudice the jurors.

Ed Blanarik, State College attorney who represented Padilla during the two-day death penalty phase, said he was “disappointed and saddened the tragedy last year is being compounded by the death of my client.”

Blanarik said he thought the defense presented a good case for mitigation.

The jury found that Padilla was a good father and that he had adjusted well to prison life. But the jury determined the circumstances of the killings outweighed those mitigating factors.

Blanarik said during the sentencing that Padilla will have something to say to the victims’ families.

“He was upset by this whole matter,” Blanarik said.

The case will be sent automatically for review by the state Supreme Court.

District Attorney Richard Consiglio said he thought the government presented an overwhelming case.

He said there were many circumstances about Padilla that were not permitted into the trial.

Carpenter barred Padilla’s immigration status and refused to allow testimony about $19,000 in a briefcase that police found hidden near the murder weapon.

Also Padilla’s criminal history, which included the stabbing of his former father-in-law and the beating of his girlfriend, were not permitted in the trial.

“This is not some guy who one night went crazy. ... This guy may not be the worst of the worst, but he is down there somewhere,” Consiglio said.

He said he will not second-guess the jury’s decisions.

“This guy is a bad person,” he said.

Mirror Staff Writer Phil Ray is at 946-7468.

Jenny - I would love to see him in general population too. He would make somoeone a nice girlfriend... lol
I too am on the fence about the sentencing. It is definitely what he deserves, but the way the state is in the act of putting someone to death, I may die before he does. They really need to have an "express lane" for anyone who has committed such a brutal act. Killing one person is bad enough, but three should bump ya higher on the list. I dont know.... Im just sayin.

Originally Posted by Barbie38

Wonder if they gave him triple death sentences or just a single death sentence.

I am not 100% positive, but I'm pretty sure that it was 3 death sentences. I could be wrong though.

Originally Posted by Barbie38

Been thinking, death penalty might not be so bad after all. When this all happened it was brought to the attention of the PA lawmakers. They won't stand for all his appeals and the Mexican government crying about the verdict.

Bill Shuster was all fired up about it. He addressed the House of Representatives a week after the murders. I suspect that he won't be forgetting about it anytime soon.

http://www.house.gov/list/press/pa09_sh ... peech.html

For Immediate Release: Contact: Tory Mazzola
September 6, 2005 202-225-2431

SHUSTER GIVES FLOOR SPEECH ON ALTOONA TRIPLE MURDER
Meeting with Senior ICE Officials Planned for Tomorrow Afternoon


Washington, DC – Congressman Bill Shuster gave a speech this afternoon before the House of Representatives on the triple murder in Altoona and the growing immigration problem in the United States. (Text of speech included below.)
Tomorrow afternoon Shuster will be meeting with three senior Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, and today’s speech brings the issue to the attention of other Members of Congress. Acting Assistant Director for Investigations Bill Reid, Deputy Assistant Director Kevin Kozak and Claude Arnold, who handled the Padilla case at ICE headquarters, will be coming to Congressman Shuster’s Washington office for the meeting. Reid also serves as the Special Agent in Charge (SAC) for the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh regions and with that is responsible for developing an enforcement strategy for that area of responsibility.

Below is the text of Shuster’s floor speech before the House of Representatives:



“Mr. Speaker, I rise today because America’s immigration problem has grown to be even more alarming to me than it was just two weeks ago. Three men were killed in Altoona by an illegal alien who should have been deported years ago.

“Miguel Padilla, the alleged killer, has been living here for fifteen years, has a driver’s license, a registered car, graduated from Penn-Cambria High School and has been arrested twice before for assault with a knife and illegal possession of a gun – all after entering the U.S. illegally. Alfred Mignogna, a local businessman, Fred Rickabaugh, a worker at the veterans club, and Stephen Heiss, a Marine veteran, were killed in cold blood by Padilla last week. It is terrible enough when a murder occurs, but to have it happen by someone who should not have been here adds to the despair.

“This is an example that happens far too often in our country. When police had Padilla in custody during these arrests they contacted Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE did nothing and they have no answers to this day. Three murders could have been prevented. It is outrageous for Padilla to go unnoticed in our country for that long, especially with prior arrests. It is hard enough to find illegal aliens, but when they are handed over to federal authorities action needs to be taken.”

It is hard enough to find illegal aliens, but when they are handed over to federal authorities action needs to be taken

Amen.

http://www.altoonamirror.com/News/artic ... cleID=5197


Thursday, September 28, 2006 — Time: 1:32:30 PM EST

Mother seeks $100 million in son’s death

By Phil Ray, pray@altoonamirror.com


HOLLIDAYSBURG — The mother of a man killed in a triple homicide last year plans to sue the federal government for $100 million, court documents state.

Sandra Miller of Altoona is the mother of Stephen Heiss, who died Aug. 28, 2005.

Miguel Padilla was convicted and received death sentences this month for killing Alfred Mignogna, owner of the United Veterans Association building; Fredrick Rickabaugh Sr., UVA doorman; and Heiss, a patron.

The jury wasn’t told that Padilla is an illegal alien.

The civil lawsuit notice, filed by attorney Art Cohen of Hollidaysburg, blames the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for allowing Padilla to remain in the United States.

Padilla, 27, came to America as a young boy with his mother and brothers to escape an alcoholic father.

He graduated from Penn Cambria High School but never became a U.S. citizen.

He was involved in a stabbing incident in which the victim was his then-father-in-law.

ICE never took Padilla into custody or attempted to deport him.

U.S. Rep. Bill Shuster, R-9th District, spoke of the case on the House floor, saying ICE did nothing about Padilla.

Most of the money sought is for punitive damages because the government did not take any action that could have prevented the homicides.

An attorney with ICE declined comment Wednesday. ICE has asked Cohen to provide it with more details concerning the Padilla case.

Mirror Staff Writer Phil Ray is at 946-7468.

Im glad to see she is taking a stand against the governmetn for allowing Padilla to stay in the country while they had knowledge of his illegal status. Though it will not bring back her son or erase the pain caused by this tragedy, a resolution in her favor in this case can result in a better life for her and her family. That was something Steve himself tried to give his mother. As it was told to me, he helped his mother getthe things she needed that she could not afford for herself. I think all of the victims families should also pursue legal action againt the government.