Expert: Try teen as juvenile
Green charged with 2nd-degree murder in Pfirsching’s killing
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A forensic psychologist from Pittsburgh on Monday recommended that the case of one of the teenage suspects in the February murder of 15-year-old Devon Pfirsching of Altoona be transferred from the adult court to the Blair County Juvenile Court.
Alice A. Applegate, who was an elementary school teacher for eight years before receiving a doctorate in psychology, stated that Damien Green, 16, was amenable to treatment in the juvenile justice system rather than face trial before a jury on charges of second-degree murder and robbery in the adult criminal court.
If the Green case would be transferred to the juvenile court, he could possibly be placed in a juvenile treatment center or the State Correctional Institution at Pine Grove, Indiana County, until his 21st birthday.
Applegate said that Green would receive an education, mental health treatment and any other services he needs in the juvenile system, enabling him to overcome the trauma and anxiety that he incurred during his years growing up in Altoona.
"A lot can happen in four years and four months," Applegate said as she expressed hope that he would mature in a positive way between now and the time he becomes 21 years old.
Applegate, who was ruled an expert in forensic psychology by Blair County President Judge Elizabeth Doyle, said she reviewed the charges against Green, his record in a prior appearance in the juvenile court and results of multiple tests she administered to him, and she came away convinced that while he joined three other youths in the robbery and slaying of Devon Pfirsching, he was not one of the principal participants who allegedly planned and killed the youngster when they attempted to rob him during the night of Feb. 25.
Green, 15 at the time, was with other teens that night, including Owen Southerland, 15, and Logan Persing, 16, who allegedly lured Pfirsching into an alley on the 100 block of Fourth Avenue.
Southerland, it is charged, put a Glock handgun to Pfirsching's head and demanded he drop the marijuana he had and run. When the victim did not run, Southerland began beating Pfirsching with the gun. When Pfirsching fought back, Southerland pulled the trigger, killing him, according to charges.
The teens then left the scene of the shooting and left the marijuana behind.
A fourth teen, Omedro T. Davis, 16 at the time, was eventually arrested by city police as the person who allegedly provided the stolen Glock to Southerland.
Applegate stated that Green did not know Southerland was carrying the Glock.
He did not meaningfully participate in the planning of the robbery, and upon hearing the shot, he ran, she said.
According to her review of the case, he had no further involvement in the ensuing attempt to cover up the crime.
"Damien did not contribute one meaningful detail to the robbery," she said.
She repeatedly testified that in her opinion, Damien only became part of the group the evening before the robbery.
"He was not involved in any part of the processing (group planning). Damien was an afterthought. He was peripheral," Applegate said.
According to her, "He was not in the loop. He was asked (to become a part of the group) at the last minute."
She described Green as a "big kid" who was not part of a gang and was not streetwise, addressing a question posed by Altoona attorney Dan Kiss, about whether Green was criminally sophisticated.
Applegate insisted that Green is able to go through treatment and come out a better person.
At the time of the killing, Green was going through a tough stretch. He had lost contact with his father. He was suffering "excruciating pain" due to a football injury. She explained that football was part of his identity.
"He was totally shut down. ... Nothing was working in his life," the psychologist said.
"He is remorseful about what happened. ... He feels badly about what happened," she concluded.
Applegate is the key witness in the attempt by Attorney Kiss to remove Green from adult court.
Only one other witness testified Monday, Molly Wink, from the Blair County Juvenile Probation Office.
Wink reported that Green had prior experience in Juvenile Court when he was charged with several minor offenses, but that he had successfully completed the program and his record was purged in December 2019.
The hearing was contentious, however, as Blair County Assistant District Attorney Nichole Smith challenged Applegate's opinions.
Smith persisted in questioning Applegate about Green's charges in Juvenile Court, noting that they included an assault on police officers.
She also noted Green's spotty record in school, where he allegedly got into a fight.
Kiss objected to Smith's attempts to "relitigate" Green's prior juvenile court experience, pointing out the District Attorney's Office agreed to drop the charges.
Applegate said she didn't know about Green's alleged school offenses and Doyle ordered the prosecution to allow her to review Green's school record.
Smith also pointed out that Green provided his share of text messages during the final planning stages of the robbery.
Police obtained the cellphones of Southerland, Persing, Green and Davis in putting together the picture of what occurred that night.
They planned what to do if Pfirsching arrived at the site of the meeting in the alley in a vehicle and what to do if he was accompanied by others.
Southerland allegedly messaged the group on Snapchat that "I'll just put a gun to his head when we hop in the whip (vehicle)."
Applegate insisted that there was no evidence to show Green ever read the message.
She spent six hours on the witness stand, at which point Doyle related the decertification hearing could not be concluded Monday.
Doyle said the hearing will reconvene Jan. 7, when the prosecution will present its expert witness who will argue against transferring the case to juvenile court.