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Thread: Isiah “Zay” Solomon Payne Sentenced to LWOP in 2020 PA Slaying of Natalie Washington and Mikal Jackson-Stevenson

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    Isiah “Zay” Solomon Payne Sentenced to LWOP in 2020 PA Slaying of Natalie Washington and Mikal Jackson-Stevenson




    Dedicated policing resulted in homicide suspect arrests

    Altoona Mirror

    The investigation into the murders of Natalie Washington and Mikal Jackson-Stevenson started with a 911 call.

    The call came close to 12 hours after police allege Isiah “Zay” Payne shot 52-year-old Washington and 28-year-old Jackson-Stevenson before making off with a stash of crack cocaine and money, according to charges filed by Altoona police.
    Initially, when officers responded, they believed it was an overdose, but it was soon apparent that Washington and Jackson-Stevenson died violent deaths.

    Police noted the 911 caller was a woman who had dropped Jackson-Stevenson off at 2606 Beale Ave. the night before. She told police she drove to a convenience store to use the Wi-Fi, and when she returned to the apartment, the door was locked. The woman spent the night trying to call Jackson-Stevenson, who had two cellphones, while driving back and forth from the apartment to area convenience stores.

    About 11:30 a.m. on May 28, the woman used a credit card to open the apartment door and she found Washington and Jackson-Stevenson on the living room floor. Police said the initial 911 call was for a drug overdose.

    When one of the responding officers overheard the woman talking to someone on her cellphone at the scene say, “He had it on him but obviously it’s gone now,” police became even more suspicious that the killings were related to drugs, detectives said in the charges.
    Officers had already found items inside the apartment, such as a scale, tied plastic bags and copper scouring pad, that led them to believe there had been a drug-related robbery.

    Gathering evidence

    How police arrived at the scene on May 28, with scant information, and built an investigation that led to the arrests of Payne and his girlfriend, Onya Lewis, involved gathering evidence using an array of confidential sources, digital forensics and old-fashioned police work, Blair County District Attorney Pete Weeks said after the arrests.

    While the case was investigated by the Altoona Police Department, Weeks said it could not have come together without cooperation and assistance from other agencies, including the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office and state police that assisted in the investigation, the Logan Township police for their help at the scene, the U.S. Marshals Service in locating and arresting Payne and Lewis, and the Blair County Sheriff’s office for making personnel available to travel to Delaware to bring the pair back to Blair County.

    “Specifically, I would like to thank the Altoona Police Department. Detective (Derrick) Tardive, Detective (Shane) Strobel and Detective (David) Dey did outstanding work investigating a case where really there was no answers and no immediate information when law enforcement responded to the scene of the crime,” Weeks said.

    Along with Washington’s cellphone, police seized the phone of the woman who called 911 and was overheard talking about suspected drugs so a detective could retrieve any messages or other evidence.

    Police also received crucial information from several confidential sources who admitted to police they bought crack cocaine from Payne and Lewis, who were supplied by and selling on behalf of Jackson-Stevenson.

    The sources provided police with a wealth of information that helped investigators piece together the timeline of events as well as alleged motivations and movements of the suspects. It also provided police with enough evidence to file drug charges against Payne and Lewis so they could be arrested and brought back to Blair County.

    Digital forensics

    “This case is an example of how powerful digital forensics has become as an investigatory tool for law enforcement — that is what broke this case open,” Weeks said. “What gave the digital forensics context in this case is another aspect of Blair County that is unique from other surrounding counties — especially some of the larger areas we have in Pennsylvania — is that citizens and our police still work together. Not only will they get along, they’ll talk to each other.

    “In this case, even the people who were involved in buying the drugs from Mr. Payne, Miss Lewis and the decedents — even those people were willing to come forward and talk to police and give them the context or the back story about what was going on here. Without that information and without that cooperation by citizens, these arrests would not be possible and this investigation would not have been possible,” Weeks said.

    “I think that’s something we’ve seen nationally, unfortunately, in the last few months — this huge anti-police surge and this clash between law enforcement and the community — when instead, law enforcement and the community need to be working together,” Weeks said.

    Police learned on the day of the killings that a man called “Zay” had been selling crack cocaine for Jackson-Stevenson out of Washington’s apartment, that he had been ripping people off by selling them crushed pills as well as owing Jackson-Stevenson about $2,000.

    Police were also told by sources that “Zay” was “staying in Gallitzin with some girl,” Altoona police detectives wrote in the charges.

    Police networks

    On May 29, the day after the murders, state police in Pittsburgh were contacted by Altoona police to help in tracking down a confidential source. Altoona police also asked state police if they were aware of any Black women living in Gallitzin, since investigators had received information that “Zay” was living with a Black woman there. One of the troopers told Altoona police he knew of one woman that was living on Main Street who had recently been involved in a domestic and that he would check and let Altoona police know of the address and the names involved, according to the charges.

    Altoona police learned from the trooper that at about 7 p.m. on May 28, he was patrolling the Gallitzin area and drove past the address on the 400 block of Main Street where the Black female was living. The trooper noticed a U-Haul truck parked outside and people moving items out of her apartment, according to the charges. The trooper then told Altoona police that the “Zay” they were looking for maybe Isiah Payne, who lived at the address with Onya Lewis.

    Once Altoona police had those two names, they were able to pull photographs from JNET — the Pennsylvania Justice Network — to create an eight-person photo lineup. Police then were able to show that lineup to confidential sources who admitted to buying crack cocaine from Payne and Lewis and had been to Washington’s apartment to identify the pair as the suspects.

    On June 4, Altoona detectives contacted U-Haul and were told that Lewis rented a truck from the company’s Johnstown location. Police obtained the rental agreement for the truck as well as a photograph of the people renting the U-Haul truck, which police were able to identify as Payne and Lewis. Police also retrieved video footage from multiple Sheetz stores in the Johnstown area and found that Sheetz cameras at the Cresson store captured Payne and Lewis pulling into the parking lot about 1 p.m. on May 28.

    Police said Payne was driving a dark-colored Chevrolet sedan, and while both he and Lewis walked in the store with their shirts pulled up over their faces, they eventually uncovered their faces in the video, which clearly showed the vehicle they were driving as well.

    Police took that footage and compared it to the video footage from a home on the 800 block of 26th Street that showed a vehicle that matched the vehicle that Lewis drove, parked on 26th Street at 11:53 p.m. on May 27. The footage showed someone get out of the vehicle and walk toward the alley and rear of 2606 Beale Ave., police noted in the charges. The vehicle then backed up and pulled away with the headlights off and turned left on to Broad Avenue.

    On June 24, police were able to learn from the family of Jackson-Stevenson about the Instagram accounts of Payne and Lewis.

    Felony warrants

    On June 25, police received information from Harrisburg about the license plate on the Chevrolet Impala that Payne and Lewis were last seen driving. It was a file transfer request that showed the license plate was checked by police in Coweta County, Ga., on June 12. On June 26, Altoona investigators learned from the dispatch center in Coweta County, Ga., that a sheriff’s deputy had pulled over the Impala and that Payne was behind the wheel.

    Altoona police were able to obtain body cam footage of that traffic stop and confirmed that Payne and Lewis were in the car. Altoona police then obtained felony arrest warrants for Payne and Lewis for allegedly selling crack cocaine.

    Altoona police learned in early July that Lewis had not seen her children for several weeks, which was unusual. She had dropped them off at their father’s home in Philadelphia about 6 a.m. on May 28, the morning of the murders, according to police.

    Altoona police also learned in early July that one of Lewis’s sisters came and picked up the children and took them to her home, and although police did not know the exact location, it was believed to be in Delaware.

    On July 3, Altoona detectives used cellphone records to show Jackson-Stevenson was communicating with Lewis leading up to the killings. Police noted Lewis’s phone had 42 communications with Jackson-Stevenson’s phone from May 18 through May 27. There were 16 text messages between the Lewis phone and Jackson-Stevenson’s phone on the day of the shootings.

    Geo-location data from Payne’s cellphone put him in Altoona at the time of the killings, and on July 9, Altoona police were able to use the cellphone data to track Payne’s cellphone as it traveled from Gallitzin to Altoona and back to Gallitzin during the time of the homicide.

    Police also completed a search warrant and obtained cellphone data for Lewis’s cellphone to show her location during the time of the homicides, which was in Altoona. Call details and geo-location data from both phone numbers of Payne and Lewis indicated that after the killings the phones traveled back to the Portage area of Cambria County and then to Philadelphia before going to Delaware and then back to the Portage area, according to police.

    On July 10, U.S. Marshals contacted Altoona police about Lewis and Payne, according to the charges. Police said U.S. Marshals helped with the search warrant to ping Lewis’s cellphone and they told Altoona investigators that they located the car that Lewis and Payne had been using in Delaware near the location of the cellphone pings.

    After conducting surveillance, U.S. Marshals arrested Payne on the Altoona drug warrant as he walked out of their apartment. Lewis was arrested a short time later inside the apartment on her arrest warrant. U.S. Marshals then seized the cellphones that Payne and Lewis had, and their vehicle was towed to the police impound lot.

    By the time police spoke with Payne and Lewis after they had been brought back to Altoona on July 15, investigators already knew where the pair had been leading up to during, and then after, the killings, according to the charges.

    Police said Lewis confirmed that after returning to their Gallitzin home, Payne drove her to Sheetz and then to the one confidential source’s home to sell some crack. Lewis confirmed with police that she drove to Philadelphia to drop off her children with their father at about 6 a.m. the day of the killings and then drove to Delaware to pick up her sister’s boyfriend before she drove back to Gallitzin.

    Lewis also confirmed that the pair drove to Johnstown, rented a U-Haul and returned to Gallitzin pack up the house. She said they moved to an apartment in Johnstown but only stayed two or three days and then decided to go to Atlanta, Ga. Lewis told police they stayed in a hotel in Georgia for a few weeks, and while in Atlanta, Payne sold the gun he used to shoot Washington and Jackson-Stevenson at a pawn shop.

    Police noted that Lewis gave a detailed description of the area where the pawn shop is located, and on Friday, police said that part of the investigation is ongoing.

    Police said that Payne threw the two cellphones that belonged to Jackson-Stevenson out of the vehicle as the pair drove to Gallitzin after the killings.

    Lewis told police that after a few weeks, they decided to go back to Delaware and get her children. Lewis stated that her sister picked up her children from their father’s house and brought them to her in Delaware, according to the charges.

    Violent crime

    “I’ve said this many times, but I’ll say it again — drug trafficking equals violent crime. Period,” Weeks said. “Drug trafficking is not victimless. It is not a crime without violence.”

    Weeks stressed it was the reason behind Washington’s and Jackson-Stevenson’s deaths and it’s been the reason behind other recent homicides in Blair County. He said police and prosecutors will continue to aggressively pursue drug dealers in the area.

    Payne and Lewis remain in Blair County Prison with a preliminary hearing slated for Aug. 5. Payne was denied bail because he is charged with two counts of homicide along with numerous related felonies, and bail for Lewis is set at $1 million.

    https://www.altoonamirror.com/news/l...spect-arrests/
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
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    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
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    Prosecutors to seek death penalty in slayings of 2 in May

    San Francisco Chronicle

    HOLLIDAYSBURG, Pa. (AP) — Prosecutors say they plan to seek the death penalty if a man is convicted of first-degree murder in the deaths of two people whose bodies were found in a Pennsylvania home earlier this year.

    Isaiah Payne, 32, of Philadelphia is charged in the deaths of 28-year-old Mikal Jackson-Stevenson and 52-year-old Natalie Washington in Altoona in May.

    https://www.sfchronicle.com/news/art...f-15623244.php
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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    Separate trial sought in fatal shooting

    By Kay Stephens
    Altoona Mirror


    HOLLIDAYSBURG — A Gallitzin woman is asking a Blair County judge to separate her trial from that of her co-defendant accused of fatally shooting two people inside an Altoona residence on May 28, 2020.

    Onya Lewis, 33, in a petition filed with the county court, contends that she will be prejudiced if tried with Isiah “Zay” Payne, 33, of Philadelphia, who could be sentenced to death if convicted of first-degree murder.

    Lewis, who faces second-degree murder charges, is accused of providing Payne with a ride to and from the 2600 block of Beale Avenue where Natalie Washington, 52, of Altoona, and Mikal Jackson-Stevenson, 28, of Philadelphia, were found dead in Washington’s first-floor apartment.

    In a hearing Thursday before Judge Timothy M. Sullivan, Chief Public Defender Russ Montgomery asked that Lewis be tried separately from Payne.

    Montgomery pointed out because Lewis isn’t facing the death penalty, her fate shouldn’t rest with jurors willing to impose the death penalty if they convict Payne of first-degree murder.

    In response, District Attorney Pete Weeks proposed questioning potential jurors in a way that distinguishes Payne’s capital case from Lewis’ non-capital case.

    Weeks also spoke in favor of a joint trial so jurors can evaluate Lewis’ interactions with Payne and decide if she’s guilty of second-degree murder. Based on the criminal charges Altoona police filed, Payne and Lewis were allegedly involved in illegal drug transactions with Washington and Jackson-Stevenson.

    Montgomery also asked Sullivan to separate the trials so Lewis’ case goes to trial instead of remaining on hold while Payne’s case is prepared for trial. Both defendants have been in jail since July 2020 when they were brought back to Altoona and charged, after being arrested by U.S. Marshals in New Castle, Delaware.

    Weeks also acknowledged a desire to see the case move forward.

    “We thought we’d get these cases to trial in the later part of 2022,” Weeks told Sullivan.

    Montgomery mentioned that a mitigation expert hasn’t yet been hired, as required, in Payne’s capital murder case.

    “There’s no way this is going to trial in 2022,” Montgomery told the judge.

    Then on Lewis’ behalf, Montgomery clarified: “I’ve always said I’m ready for trial.”

    Sullivan told the attorneys he would review their requests before ruling on the motion. The judge also suggested setting up a status conference with defense attorney Richard Corcoran, who represents Payne.

    https://www.altoonamirror.com/news/l...atal-shooting/
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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    Joint trial set in homicide case

    Payne, Lewis charged in fatal shooting of two

    By Kay Stephens
    Altoona Mirror

    HOLLIDAYSBURG — A Blair County judge has ruled in favor of a joint trial for two people facing murder charges in the fatal shooting of two people inside an Altoona residence on May 28, 2020.

    Onya Lewis, 33, Gallitzin, who faces second-degree murder and related charges, asked Judge Timothy M. Sullivan in late January for her own jury trial, maintaining that she will be prejudiced if tried with co-defendant Isiah “Zay” Payne, 33, of Philadelphia, who faces first-degree murder and possibly the death penalty if convicted.

    Sullivan, in a recent ruling filed in the prothonotary’s office, turned down Lewis’ request and said her concerns can be addressed with cautionary instructions to the jurors during a joint trial.

    “We believe that any jury selected will be capable of separating the evidence so there is no danger of confusion,” Sullivan said.

    Chief Public Defender Russ Montgomery, who represents Lewis, argued in January in favor of a separate trial, pointing out that her fate shouldn’t rest with jurors willing to impose the death penalty if they convict Payne.

    Sullivan relied on a 1987 U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Buchanan v. Kennedy, to decide against Lewis’ request. The majority of the justices found no constitutional violations involving “the use of a death-qualified jury for a joint trial in which the death penalty was sought only against one co-defendant.”

    Part of the reasoning behind that high court ruling, Sullivan pointed out, was that the conduct of the co-defendants arose from the same events.

    In the Blair County case, Sullivan said, “There is no dispute that defendant Lewis and defendant Payne are alleged to have participated in the same series of acts or transitions constituting the criminal offenses.”

    Altoona police — who charged Lewis with second-degree murder in the deaths of Natalie Washington, 52, of Altoona, and Mikal Jackson-Stevenson, 28, of Philadelphia — identified Lewis as the person who gave Payne a ride to the area near Washington’s residence on the 2600 block of Beale Avenue in the hours before the pair were found dead inside Washington’s residence. Police also said Lewis later picked up Payne after he exited the residence and drove away.

    Police accused Payne of shooting both Washington and Jackson-Stevenson in a drug-selling dispute, based on statements they took from Payne and from Lewis.

    Payne, who is represented by defense attorney Richard Corcoran, recently asked the court for permission to represent himself in a document filled with pretrial motions.

    Sullivan denied Payne’s requests and affirmed that Corcoran remains his attorney. In a Feb. 8 order, the judge also named Ebensburg attorney Timothy M. Burns as Payne’s co-counsel for death penalty representation.

    In his pretrial motions, Payne spoke of what could be a possible self-defense strategy at trial and asked that the word “victim” be barred from use. Payne allegedly told Altoona police officers that he suspected that he was being set up when he went to Washington’s house.

    Cocoran, in late 2020, filed pretrial motions on Payne’s behalf. In response, Sullivan signed an August 2021 order providing $2,500 as an initial retainer for the defense to hire an investigator. The judge also authorized $25,000 for the hiring of defense mitigation specialist as required in a death penalty case.

    No trial date has been set so far, but a status conference is scheduled for March 3.

    https://www.altoonamirror.com/news/l...homicide-case/
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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    Judge asked to bar use of Philadelphia suspect's statements in 2020 western Pennsylvania double murder

    By Altoona Mirror

    HOLLIDAYSBURG, Pa. - A Philadelphia man charged in a double murder in central Pennsylvania two years ago is asking a judge to bar prosecutors from using statements he said he made to police while dealing with drug withdrawal symptoms.

    Isiah Payne, 34, is charged in the deaths of 28-year-old Mikal Jackson-Stevenson and 52-year-old Natalie Washington in Altoona in May 2020. Prosecutors have said they plan to seek the death penalty if he is convicted of first-degree murder.

    Payne told a Blair County judge Tuesday that he regularly took pain medication and failure to do so left him irritable and unable to concentrate, The (Altoona) Mirror reported. He said he took a tablet while in police custody but it was wearing off as he was questioned by police.

    Altoona police officers, however, told the judge that they saw no evidence of the alleged withdrawal symptoms, saying Payne was calm and coherent and answered every question.

    Prosecutors allege that Payne killed the victims during a dispute over drug sales. His trial is scheduled to begin in December. Defense attorney Richard Corcoran challenged the legality of using Payne’s statements to police and has raised other objections in pretrial motions that the judge will rule on later.

    https://www.fox29.com/news/judge-ask...ble-murder.amp
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    Double homicide trial set for March

    Payne, Lewis accused in killing of two in Beale Avenue home

    By Kay Stephens
    Altoona Mirror

    HOLLIDAYSBURG — More challenges are developing to the criminal charges in a Blair County double homicide case now scheduled for trial in March.

    Almost 2.5 years have passed since Natalie Washington, 52, of Altoona, and Mikal Jackson-Stevenson, 28, of Philadelphia, were shot dead on May 28, 2020, inside Washington’s residence on the 2600 block of Beale Avenue during a drug-selling dispute.

    Isiah “Zay” Payne, 33, of Philadelphia, is charged with first-degree murder and faces the death penalty if convicted.

    Onya Lewis, 33, of Gallitzin, who drove Payne to and from Washington’s residence at the time of the fatal shooting, is charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault and related charges.

    In court Thursday, Lewis’ recently appointed defense attorney, Kristen Anastasi, told Judge Timothy M. Sullivan that she’s asking for dismissal of all charges against Lewis.

    Anastasi said Lewis took Payne to the Broad Avenue residence for what was to be “a meeting” with Jackson-Stevenson and Washington, who was Lewis’ aunt.

    “(Lewis) knew that Payne had a gun with him for protection,” Anastasi said. “She didn’t think he was going there to kill the aunt and Jackson-Stevenson.”

    While Lewis wasn’t inside the house when Jackson-Stevenson and Washington were shot, she was charged with second-degree murder for her role in contributing to their deaths in driving Payne to and from the neighborhood and their efforts to leave town, eventually ending up in Georgia.

    In court Thursday, First Assistant District Attorney Nichole Smith called upon Altoona Police Detective Sgt. Shane Strobel for testimony in support of the charges.

    The officer, who de**scribed Lewis and Payne as “always together,” spoke of how Lewis drove Payne to and from the neighborhood on the night of the shooting and how they made plans to leave Altoona after the shooting.

    He also said it was Lewis’ idea to flee Pennsylvania, based on text messages collected during the investigation.

    “We’re going to drive baby,” Strobel said Lewis texted Payne in reference to heading to Georgia.

    Strobel also referenced additional text messages Lewis sent after the shooting including one in which she told the recipient: “My boyfriend killed her.”

    Anastasi asked Strobel about a statement Payne made when interviewed by police, indicating that Lewis didn’t know he was going to go through with the shooting.

    “Everything he says is to protect her,” Strobel said.

    Anastasi was appointed in August to take over Lewis’ case after Chief Public Defender Russ Montgomery reported a potential conflict with his continued representation.

    Earlier this year, Montgomery asked Sullivan to order separate trials for Lewis and Payne so their charges could be evaluated independently. Sullivan, who recognized that the cases are intertwined, concluded in a ruling that the pair should be tried together.

    Sullivan also ruled in August against challenges to the criminal charge Payne faces, as raised by his defense attorney, Richard Corcoran.

    Corcoran, who was in court on Thursday for Anastasi’s challenges, said after court concluded that Payne’s case is ready to go to trial.

    While Sullivan is retiring as a full-time judge at the end of December, he is currently scheduled to preside over the Lewis’ and Payne’s trial in his role as a part-time senior judge starting in January.

    Sullivan has already scheduled jury selection in the case for March 14 to 17 and the trial for March 21 to 24.

    https://www.altoonamirror.com/news/l...set-for-march/
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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    Related:

    Judge allows murder charge to stand in shooting

    Lewis will face 2nd-degree count for alleged part in deaths of two in city home

    By Kay Stephens

    Altoona Mirror

    HOLLIDAYSBURG — A Blair County judge is allowing second-degree murder and related charges to stand against a Gallitzin woman scheduled for trial in March with the man accused of fatally shooting two people inside an Altoona residence on May 28, 2020.

    Senior Judge Timothy M. Sullivan ruled Friday that prosecutors offered sufficient evidence to support the criminal charges against Onya Lewis, 34, either through direct liability or conspiracy/accomplice liability.

    During an October court hearing, defense attorney Kristen Anastasi tried to persuade Sullivan to dismiss the charges against her client. She said Lewis drove Isiah “Zay” Payne to Altoona on May 28, 2020, for what she thought was going to be “a meeting” with Mikal Jackson-Stevenson and Natalie Washington, who was Lewis’ aunt, at Washington’s residence on the 2600 block of Beale Avenue.

    Payne, who is facing first-degree murder charges, is accused of shooting both and leaving Washington’s house with drugs and cash, then walking down the street to get into the vehicle that Lewis was driving.

    In his ruling, Sullivan acknowledged that Lewis being parked, then moving her vehicle to what appears to be a pre-arranged location down the street, amounts to circumstantial evidence of an agreement to commit the homicides and robbery. That was the position taken by First Assistant District Attorney Nichole Smith during an October court hearing.

    Sullivan’s ruling also referenced a phone conversation in which Lewis admitted to involvement in the killing of the “whale,” a reference to Jackson-Stevenson. The judge said that evidence also supports the criminal charges against Lewis.

    Friday’s ruling is the latest in a series Sullivan has rendered in preparation for a joint jury trial, starting March 23, for Payne and Lewis.

    Jury selection is set for March 14 to 17 in the case where potential jurors will be asked about their ability to consider imposing a death penalty sentence, if Payne is convicted of first-degree murder.

    Payne, who admitted to investigating Altoona police officers that he was selling drugs for Jackson-Stevenson, told them that he thought his life was in danger when he went to Washington’s house and shot Jackson-Stevenson, then Washington.

    Payne told the police officers that Jackson-Stevenson was angry with him about insufficient payments for drug transactions and previously told him: “I got people that’s on standby to put a bullet in your head.”

    Payne and his defense attorney, Richard Corcoran, tried last year to keep Payne’s alleged admissions to police from use at trial. Payne said he had been under drug withdrawal symptoms when he spoke to the investigating officers.

    Sullivan, who heard Payne make that claim during a court hearing, also reviewed the record and found the defendant’s statements were offered voluntarily and without pressure or coercion.

    Lewis, who also spoke with investigating police officers, told them she drove Payne to Washington’s residence because he was to meet with Jackson-Stevenson over issues concerning drugs and money.

    She also admitted to officers that she and Payne traveled to Georgia, where Payne sold the gun used in the killing. The gun was later recovered from a pawn shop.

    In addition to second-degree murder, Lewis’ charges include aggravated assault, conspiracy to commit robbery, robbery, tampering with physical evidence, dealing in proceeds of unlawful activities, carrying a firearm without a license, hindering apprehension or prosecution and flight to avoid apprehension, trial or punishment.

    https://www.altoonamirror.com/news/l...d-in-shooting/
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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    Photos show gunshot victims’ injuries

    Capital homicide trial for Isiah Payne to begin March 21

    By Kay Stephens
    Altoona Mirror

    HOLLIDAYSBURG — The deaths of two people found inside an Altoona residence on May 28, 2020, will be the focus of a capital homicide trial slated to start March 21 in Blair County Court.

    During a pretrial review Wednesday, crime scene and autopsy photos revealed that one of two bullets fired into Natalie Washington’s body from the back caused a spinal injury that paralyzed the 52-year-old woman who suffocated and died on the floor of her Beale Avenue residence. Additional photos showed Mikal Jackson-Stevenson, a 28-year-old Philadelphia man, with a hole on the back of his head where a single bullet was fired. His body was found a few feet away from Washington’s.

    President Judge Elizabeth A. Doyle presided over Wednesday’s proceedings in preparation for the trial of Isiah “Zay” Payne, 34, of Philadelphia, who could be sentenced to life in prison or death if convicted of first-degree murder.

    Payne is to be tried with Onya Lewis, 34, who is charged with second-degree murder for her role in the chain-of-events linked to the two deaths. She could be sentenced to life in prison if convicted.

    In court Wednesday, Lewis declined to remain in the courtroom for the entire presentation of the crime scene and autopsy photos. Upon seeing a photo showing the deceased Washington, identified in a previous hearing as her aunt, Lewis became emotional.

    “I just don’t want to see that,” Lewis told Doyle in explaining her desire to leave the courtroom. “I just don’t want to sit there and watch this. … I know I had nothing to do with this.”

    Lewis’ efforts to leave court prompted Payne’s defense attorney, Richard Corcoran, to object. If Lewis doesn’t see the photos until trial, she may exhibit similar actions and prejudice the jury against his client, Corcoran said.

    District Attorney Pete Weeks offered a similar concern, prompting Doyle to tell defense attorney Kristen Anastasi, who represents Lewis, that she should review the photos with Lewis prior to trial and instruct Lewis on trial behavior.

    Lewis subsequently left the courtroom and the review of photos continued. She returned when attorneys discussed the questions that they expect to use in selecting a jury.

    Cocoran proposed asking potential jurors about their knowledge of a life in prison sentence and that it means no parole. That’s not the case in some other states, Corcoran pointed out.

    First Assistant District Attorney Nichole Smith proposed an alternative version of Corcoran’s question to reach the same answer and Doyle said she would agree in concept with that question.

    Anastasi also asked that the questions for jurors distinguish between defendant Payne and defendant Lewis.

    Doyle acknowledged the need for distinctions and asked about efforts to make jurors aware that Lewis is not facing the death penalty. Weeks proposed telling jurors that while Lewis and Payne are being tried together, the penalties for convictions are different.

    Attorneys are expected to continue working on the questions in preparation for jury selection.

    https://www.altoonamirror.com/news/l...tims-injuries/
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

  9. #9
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    Murder trial delayed by replacement of attorney

    Payne’s required second counsel not available for health reasons

    By Kay Stephens
    Altoona Mirror

    HOLLIDAYSBURG — A capital murder case scheduled to start with jury selection on Tuesday at the Blair County Courthouse has been postponed, possibly until July, pending replacement of a defense attorney.

    For health-related reasons, Ebensburg attorney Timothy Burns isn’t available this month to represent Isiah “Zay” Payne of Philadelphia in the penalty phase of Payne’s trial that would commence if there is a first-degree murder conviction.

    While Payne’s defense attorney Richard Corcoran is available for trial, the law requires defendants in capital murder cases to have a second attorney at trial ready to handle the penalty phase.

    Payne and co-defendant Onya Lewis of Gallitzin, who is charged with second-degree murder, were scheduled for a joint trial starting March 28 after a jury was seated.

    Both are charged in the deaths of Mikal Jackson-Stevenson and Natalie Washington, who were found dead of gunshot wounds on May 28, 2020, inside Washington’s residence on the 2600 block of Beale Avenue during a drug-selling dispute.

    President Judge Elizabeth A. Doyle, after being notified of Burns’ unavailability, issued orders canceling the call for jurors to report starting Tuesday.

    In a separate order, the judge identified July 24 to 28 as jury selection dates, subject to the review of witness availability for a trial to commence the following week.

    Nearly three years have passed since Washington, 52, and Jackson-Stevenson, 28, of Philadelphia, were found dead.

    In July 2020, Altoona police arrested and charged Payne and Lewis after an investigation revealing that the couple fled the area and traveled to Georgia where the gun used in the shooting was pawned. After being taken into custody in Delaware, they were brought back to Blair County and have remained incarcerated awaiting trial.

    Senior Judge Timothy M. Sullivan, who addressed many of the case’s pretrial motions in preparation for the March 28 trial, recently made schedule adjustments that forwarded the case to Doyle. She handled the case’s most recent pretrial hearing and will be expected to address the case’s newest pretrial motions.

    Before the March trial was canceled, District Attorney Pete Weeks and First Assistant District Attorney Nicole Smith filed motions asking for Payne to be prohibited at trial from attempting to use self-defense as justification for the fatal shootings.

    The prosecutors contend that Payne admitted to police that neither Jackson-Stevenson nor Washington threatened him by brandishing a firearm inside Washington’s residence.

    Autopsy results show Jackson-Stevenson was shot in the back of his head, and Washington was shot in her back.

    “No reasonable person could infer that (Payne) was in imminent danger of death or that using deadly force was reasonably necessary in that moment to save himself,” the prosecutors stated in their motion.

    Court documents indicate that Payne also told police that Jackson-Stevenson was angry with him about insufficient payments for drug transactions and previously stated to him: “I got people that’s on standby to put a bullet in your head.”

    https://www.altoonamirror.com/news/l...t-of-attorney/
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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    Trial for shooting pushed to fall

    By Kay Stephens
    Altoona Mirror

    HOLLIDAYSBURG — The trial for two people facing murder charges in a 2020 fatal shooting of a man and woman inside an Altoona residence is now scheduled for September.

    Nearly three years have passed since Natalie Washington, 52, of Altoona, and Mikal Jackson-Stevenson, 28, of Philadelphia, were found dead on May 28, 2020, inside Washington’s residence on the 2600 block of Beale Avenue.

    Isaiah “Zay” Payne, 33, of Philadelphia, is charged with first-degree murder and faces the death penalty if convicted.

    Onya Lewis, 33, who was living in Gallitzin at the time of the fatal shooting, is charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault and related offenses.

    Both Payne and Lewis, currently incarcerated without bail options, were in Blair County Court on Monday where Blair County President Judge Elizabeth Doyle reviewed some of the pending legal issues that will factor into the evidence and testimony to be permitted at trial.

    The pair were scheduled for trial in March, when defense attorney Timothy Burns of Ebensburg, scheduled to represent Payne in the penalty phase portion of the trial, developed health-related issues that caused him to back away from the task.

    Doyle subsequently appointed attorney Thomas Hooper to take on Burns’ responsibility. In court Monday, Hooper asked that Payne undergo a neuropsychological examination for potential use at trial. Doyle asked for the request to be submitted in writing and told Hooper to be mindful of when the task could be completed.

    While District Attorney Pete Weeks asked for the case to go to trial as soon as possible, the judge and defense attorneys identified other obligations in July and August that pushed the potential four- to five-day trial into mid-September.

    The judge also allowed Richard Corcoran, Payne’s trial lawyer, and Kristen Anastasi, Lewis’ attorney, to have until June 30 to submit their positions on the presentation of trial testimony and evidence.

    In early March, Weeks and First Assistant District Attorney Nichole Smith submitted a pretrial motion asking for restrictions on defense testimony. In that motion, they maintained that the defense has no legally valid reason for claiming self-defense in the shootings.

    In court Monday, they maintained that same position.

    Corcoran countered by referencing Payne’s statements to police about being in fear of Jackson-Stevenson. Payne told officers that he knew Jackson-Stevenson was angry about insufficient payments for drug transactions. He also accused Jackson-Stevenson of threatening his life and of knowing where Payne’s family members lived in Philadelphia.

    “A number of his statements to police go to Mr. Payne’s state of mind,” Corcoran said.

    Weeks said Payne could make his claims by testifying but otherwise, there’s no evidence allowing to claim self-defense.

    Anastasi also claimed that there’s no evidence that Lewis played a key role in the events leading up to the fatal shooting or that she conspired with Payne to rob Jackson-Stevenson of money and drugs.

    Lewis has been identified as the person who drove Payne to the 2600 block of Beale Avenue and picked him up after the shooting.

    Weeks said the charges against Lewis can be supported by proving that she was either a conspirator or an accomplice.

    “We don’t have to assert that she was the mastermind,” Weeks said.

    Attorneys also disagreed over the time frame that will be referenced as to Payne and Lewis’ involvement in drug trafficking.

    “The drug trafficking allegations are the motives for the homicides,” Weeks said, suggesting that testimony could cover six or seven months before the killings. Corcoran disagreed and suggested focusing on a few days before Jackson-Stevenson and Washington were found dead.

    “I don’t know that’s it’s necessary to go six to seven months in the past,” Corcoran said.

    Weeks disagreed and said the drug debt dispute was an ongoing source of tension between Jackson-Stevenson and both defendants.

    https://www.altoonamirror.com/news/l...ushed-to-fall/
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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