Pennsylvania

Guilty Verdict in Death Penalty Trial in Pennsylvania Officer's Slaying

What to Know

  • A jury has convicted Rahmael Sal Holt in the November 2017 slaying of New Kensington officer Brian Shaw.
  • Prosecutors contend Holt was an armed drug dealer who had planned to rob the driver of the SUV that Shaw attempted to stop.
  • The jury will decide if Holt will get the death penalty.

A jury has convicted a man of first-degree murder in the shooting death of a Pennsylvania police officer almost two years ago.

Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against 31-year-old Rahmael Sal Holt in the November 2017 slaying of New Kensington officer Brian Shaw.

Prosecutors contend Holt was an armed drug dealer who had planned to rob the driver of the SUV that Shaw attempted to stop in Old Kensington in Westmoreland County on the night of the shooting. Holt has maintained that he wasn't the person who fired.

A jury convicted Holt on Tuesday after about an hour of deliberations, and will begin hearing arguments Wednesday for and against a death sentence.

Holt's father, 48-year-old Gregory Baucum, faces witness intimidation charges stemming from the case.

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