Prosecutors oppose severance in murder case

July 29, 2019 at 12:05a.m.

YOUNGSTOWN

Prosecutors object to a defendant’s motion to have his trial severed from a co-defendant in the shooting death of a North Side man.

In a motion filed in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court, assistant Prosecutor Michael Yacovone wrote that Jalon Allen, 24, should not have his trial separated from co-defendant David Oliver, 26, because they “committed this crime together, they were indicted together, they are on video together and the state would utilize the same evidence against each individual.”

Allen and Oliver are both charged with aggravated murder in the Sept. 20, 2016, shooting death of Andre Harrison, 34, in a home on Kensington Avenue.

A coroner’s report said a witness heard a gunshot and saw two men run from the home. Police found bags of suspected marijuana and a scale in the home, and in Harrison’s pockets police found bags of suspected marijuana and bags with a white powder inside, the coroner’s report said.

The case is being heard by Judge Anthony Donofrio, who ruled against a similar motion by Oliver in March.

Allen’s attorney, Frank Casesse, asked for the separation also, saying that a video of the shooting that police, showing Harrison being shot at very close range, could be prejudicial to his client if it is shown to jurors. Allen claims he was at the crime scene but did not have a weapon and did not shoot Harrison.

However, Yacovone wrote that the video “speaks for itself” and if shown to jurors would show his actions on the video are proof of his guilt and will not prejudice Allen if he is in the same courtroom as Oliver because of that.

The case is set for trial Aug. 19 with a final pretrial hearing date of Aug. 2.