Prosecution to seek death penalty in fatal arson
The prosecution plans to seek the death penalty for William Robert Woods, the West Scranton man charged with the arson deaths of two young brothers, the boys' mother said.
Lackawanna County District Attorney Andy Jarbola has told the family that prosecution intends to pursue a death sentence if Woods is convicted of first-degree murder in the deaths of Taevon and Michael Miles, Tyaisha Leary said Friday outside Central Court.
"I'm just glad they made the decision," she said.
Moments earlier, Leary watched as Magisterial District Judge Terrence Gallagher arraigned Woods on 24 felony counts, including two counts of first-degree murder, in connection with the July 21, 2009, fire at 166 S. Hyde Park Ave.
Woods, 41, Leary's former boyfriend, is accused of setting the fire in the dining room while she and her three sons slept upstairs.
Gallagher ordered Woods held in the county prison without bail.
Woods, who has been imprisoned at the State Correctional Institution at Somerset, was returned to the city about 45 minutes earlier by city police arson investigator Martin Monahan and county Detective Nicholas DeSando. He underwent initial processing at city police headquarters and then went to the courthouse for arraignment.
Outside police headquarters, Jarbola said he will not announce the prosecution's decision on seeking the death penalty until after Woods' preliminary hearing.
"I have talked to the family. They know what my intentions are," he said. "If they want to tell you, that's up to them."
Investigators announced the charges against Woods on Wednesday, the first anniversary of the arson that killed Taevon, 9, and Michael, 10. Leary and her other son, Nijea, then 12, were seriously injured in the fire.
On Friday, Leary said she can remember Taevon and Michael crying for help from inside the burning home on the night of the fire.
If Woods is convicted and sentenced to death, she said, "I want to be front and center so I can remind him that I could hear my sons screaming and I could not get them out."
Gallagher scheduled an Aug. 2 preliminary hearing for Woods, although the proceeding is expected to be postponed to a later date.
Woods is already serving a 17- to 36-month state prison sentence for threatening to kill Leary and burn her house down about two weeks before the fatal fire. He pleaded no-contest to terroristic threats in October and was sentenced in December.
http://citizensvoice.com/news/prosecution-to-seek-death-penalty-in-fatal-arson-1.900497
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