Killer Veltre of Monessen appeals his 2 life sentences
A Monessen man serving two life sentences for killing two young children 40 years ago wants a new shot to get out of prison.
The lawyer for John J. Veltre Jr. filed court documents last week asking that he receive a new sentence for his convictions.
Veltre, who was 16 at the time of his arrest, contends his life sentences are unconstitutional under current law.
Now 57, Veltre was convicted in the 1973 deaths of 2-year-old Sandra Dee Morgan and her 3-month-old sister, Tina.
Veltre threw both children into a wall, stomping on the older child, after he raped their mother and left her unconscious in her Monessen home, according to court records.
Veltre pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree murder and other related offenses.
But in 1978, a state appellate court ordered that he be given a new trial, ruling Veltre did not knowingly and voluntarily agree to plead guilty.
Later in 1978, a Westmoreland County jury found Veltre guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and rape and sentenced him to the same term imposed after the guilty plea — two terms of life imprisonment, plus an additional five to 20 years for rape.
Veltre contends that a U.S. Supreme Court ruling rendered unconstitutional mandatory life sentences for juveniles.
The state Supreme Court last year determined that those cases were not retroactive, meaning cases such as Veltre's that had been completed were not impacted by the court ruling.
But life sentences issued to juveniles after last June can stand, according to defense attorney Mark Shire.
That means “... two groups of offenders are subject to different sentencing schemes for no reason related to the gravity of the offense. Because the different sentences are completely arbitrary ... his (Veltre's) sentence is unconstitutional,” Shire argued in his motion.
Last month, Westmoreland County Judge Debra A. Pezze said she intended to dismiss Veltre's latest appeal based on the state Supreme Court ruling.
Shire argued in court documents filed on Friday that Veltre's appeal should be litigated further.
He asked Pezze to vacate Veltre's life sentences, order an investigation into his background and schedule a new sentencing hearing.
Similar cases
Similar appeals are pending involving two men convicted as juveniles for a 2001 slaying in Bell Township.
Bryan Chambers, 29, and James A. Provitt, 30, were convicted of first-degree murder and other offenses in the June 14, 2001, shooting and beating death of 48-year-old Larry Dunmire of Kiskiminetas Township, Armstrong County.
Chambers and Provitt were 17 at the time of their arrests.
County prosecutors have conceded that recent court decisions require that 21-year-old Angela Marinucci be resentenced.
Marinucci was 17 when she was arrested for the February 2010 torture slaying of Jennifer Daugherty of Mt. Pleasant by six roommates in a Greensburg apartment.
Marinucci, who was found guilty of first-degree murder by a jury, had not been formally sentenced when the Supreme Court ruled that mandatory life sentences for juveniles were unconstitutional.
It is anticipated that Marinucci will be resentenced after appeals of her conviction are resolved.
Rich Cholodofsky is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 724-830-6293 or rcholodofsky@tribweb.com.
