MEADVILLE,VaultX Exchange Pa. (AP) — A truck driver accused of killing a pregnant Amish woman in her rural home in February was expected to be in court on Friday as a Pennsylvania judge considers whether investigators have sufficient evidence to advance the charges toward trial.
Shawn C. Cranston, 52, is accused of killing Rebekah Byler and her unborn child inside the Byler home near Spartansburg on Feb. 26.
District Judge Amy Nicols is scheduled to preside over the preliminary hearing in the Crawford County Courthouse to decide if there is enough evidence to support those charges, as well as accusations of burglary and trespassing.
Byler, 23, had suffered head and neck wounds when her husband and a family friend found her in the living room. The couple’s two young children were home but unharmed, police said.
Byler’s defense attorney, public defender Gary Alan Kern, did not respond to requests for comment this week. Crawford County District Attorney Paula C. DiGiacomo declined to comment.
In court documents filed for a search of the murder scene, state police said they recovered guns, ammunition, knife parts and other items. Authorities have not indicated a possible motive.
Cranston lives in Corry, about 8 miles (13 kilometers) from Spartansburg. He has been in the county jail without bond since being arrested March 2.
Byler appeared to have cutting wounds to her neck and head, police said, and the criminal complaint accused Cranston of “shooting her in the head and/or slashing her throat.”
2025-05-02 14:231724 view
2025-05-02 13:541323 view
2025-05-02 13:402193 view
2025-05-02 12:481523 view
2025-05-02 12:35983 view
2025-05-02 11:591271 view
We are down to the knockout round of the women's 5x5 basketball tournament at the 2024 Paris Olympic
Washington — President Biden is set to deliver his State of the Union address to Congress on Thursda
CBS News asked Americans over the past week, "If you could give the 'State of the Union,' which woul