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HOLLIDAYSBURG – Tracy Ann Stephenson of Altoona entered an open guilty plea to third-degree murder on Thursday afternoon in the 2014 death of her 71-year-old mother, Barbara Elias.
She will be sentenced March 18.
Stephenson, 49, shackled at the wrists and wearing a prison-orange jumpsuit, appeared before Blair County Judge Wade A. Kagarise to admit to the killing, which took place the morning of Nov. 19, 2014.
She was asked by the judge if she knew what the term “open plea” meant.
She replied it meant that Kagarise “will have the opportunity to impose the sentence you want.”
Later in the colloquy with the judge, she added, “What I am essentially saying, I’m putting my faith in you.”
Blair County Assistant District Attorney Derek Elensky and District Attorney Richard A. Consiglio worked throughout the week with Public Defender Russell Montgomery and Assistant Public Defender Julia Burke to come to an agreement on the plea.
Time was getting short to resolve the case because Kagarise last week confirmed that jury selection would begin Jan. 25, followed by trial in early February.
The prosecution earlier said it was seeking a first-degree murder conviction that would have meant life in prison for Stephenson.
Third-degree murder carries a maximum of 40 years behind bars, but the defense clearly will be asking for a much shorter sentence.
Montgomery asked Kagarise to hold an all-day sentencing hearing that could include testimony by a psychiatrist who evaluated Stephenson in an effort to determine if she was able to stand trial.
The defense initially indicated that it would seek a mental health defense, contending Stephenson was mentally unstable and therefore was not aware of her actions the day her mother died.
Kagarise pointed out that Stephenson had mental health issues in the past and was taking prescribed medication.
He brought that out to make sure that Stephenson was aware of what she was doing Thursday when she entered her plea.
The judge asked her if she wanted to enter a guilty plea. She replied, “I do.”
The judge then explained that third-degree murder in Pennsylvania was a killing with malice, or hardness of heart/mind that disregarded her social duty.
She again confirmed she understood what her plea meant.
Police charged Stephenson with shooting her mother at their home on the 3700 block of Fifth Avenue.
Charges stated that the first shot wounded but did not kill Elias and that she was walking around while bleeding.
According to the charges, Stephenson eventually ended her mother’s life with a shot to the head.
At first, Stephenson did not admit to the killing, telling police she came home from running errands and found her mother in the house.
While at the city police department, Stephenson asked if she could talk to her girlfriend. She went outside to meet with her friend and a city detective who was outside with her heard her tell her friend, “I did it; I (expletive) did it.”
The detective testified at a pretrial hearing that Stephenson told her friend she hid the gun.
The friend asked, “Why did you let it get this bad? Why didn’t you talk to me about it?”
Stephenson’s reply was, “It was either me or her.”
Those comments altered the course of the police investigation, and detectives took a second statement from her in which she admitted to the shooting.
In a third interview that day, Stephenson was asked about comments she made about her mother attempting to poison her.
Neither Montgomery nor Consiglio would reveal what they intend to present during the sentencing hearing.
The prosecution retained a psychological expert to review the Stephenson case.
Consiglio said that expert may be put on the stand but didn’t commit to it.
Elensky said that Elias’ sister, who lives in New York, and other family members might want to make statements.
If the sister can’t appear in Blair County, her testimony could come through videoconference or through a written impact statement, Elensky said.
The defense attorneys said they would have several witnesses, possibly including their expert.
Mirror Staff Writer Phil Ray is at 946-7468.