Jurors hear opening statements in Pavone trial

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THE CHARGES

Anthony Pavone is facing two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of second-degree murder and second-degree possession of a weapon for the deaths of Patricia Howard, 43, of Plattsburgh and Timothy Carter, 52, of Dannemora.

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May 23, 2011

ANDREA VanVALKENBURG Press-Republican The Press Republican Mon May 23, 2011, 06:31 PM EDT

PLATTSBURGH — Prosecutors believe Anthony Pavone intentionally stalked Patricia Howard and Timothy Carter before he killed them in a jealous rage.

“The defendant was extremely jealous and extremely angry,” Clinton County District Attorney Andrew Wylie told jurors Monday morning during the start of Pavone’s murder trial.

Upset that his nine-year relationship with Howard had recently ended, Pavone couldn’t accept that she was moving on and had gone on a date with Carter to celebrate her birthday in late January 2010, Wylie said.

“If he couldn’t have her, nobody would,” the DA said as he outlined his case.

REPEATED CALLS

Wylie said prosecution testimony and evidence would show that Pavone repeatedly called both Howard and Carter on the evening of their deaths and that he tracked down Carter’s address and then went door to door looking for the pair, who were on their second date.

According to Wylie’s opening statement, Pavone knocked on Carter’s door and begged Howard to speak with him, apparently refusing to leave the Dannemora home at 3:30 a.m.

Wylie said Pavone then shot through Carter’s front door, went inside and shot the pair multiple times.

He said the couple’s injuries showed that both Carter and Howard were on the floor when the last wounds were inflicted.

“That’s how violent it was,” Wylie said, as Pavone kept his head down at the defense table, surrounded by a heavy security presence.

‘LOSS OF CONTROL’

But, contrary to the prosecution’s assertions, Pavone’s attorney, John Carney, later told jurors, the pair’s deaths were not calculated and intentional, rather the result of a sudden extreme emotional disturbance.

“No one will argue that this was a tragic event. No one will argue that these two people should not have lost their lives,” Carney said, urging jurors to keep an open mind as the trial unfolds.

Carney said Pavone’s jealousy and rage were factors in his “completely out-of-character” behavior that night when he shot the pair, supposedly after Howard said something upsetting to him.

“This is about a loss of control. ... He completely lost it. He completely snapped,” Carney said.

WANTED A HUG

In his opening, Wylie called Pavone’s defense an “excuse,” but Carney said: “It’s not an excuse. It’s a legitimate legal defense.

“Anthony Pavone was indeed suffering from an extreme emotional disturbance.”

Why else, Carney asked, would he have acted so erratically with Howard during their conversation at Carter’s home, such as asking for a hug or to sleep in the frigid cold on Carter’s porch?

“He snapped. He lost it. He acted in a rage ... in a completely emotional state,” Carney said.

Members of Howard and Carter’s families filled Judge Patrick McGill’s courtroom during the openings and were visibly angered by the defense’s version of events.

ASKED NEIGHBORS

As the first witnesses testified Monday afternoon, Carter’s neighbors described their encounters with Pavone minutes before he stormed Carter’s home.

Wendell Davenport rented an apartment in Carter’s Route 374 complex and was asleep early Jan. 31 when he awoke to someone knocking on his door.

Davenport said he opened it to a man who “was wondering where Timothy Carter was.”

After directing the person to Carter’s apartment, Davenport said, he went back to bed, only to be awoke again minutes later, this time to the sound of a gunshot.

“I heard Timothy Carter begging him to put down the gun,” Davenport recalled before his statement was stricken from the record amid defense objections.

HEARD SCREAMING

Nicole Light, another of Carter’s tenants, said she too awoke that morning to a man knocking on her door, asking for Carter.

After also directing the man to Carter’s adjacent apartment, Light said, she went back to sleep briefly before a series of loud noises woke her up.

“I heard two people screaming,” she said tearfully as she recalled the barrage of gunfire that came next.

Light said she hid in her bathroom until police arrived and then fled her home.

Both Davenport and Light identified the man who knocked on their doors as Pavone, whom they recognized from media coverage in the days after the murders.

Another neighbor, Floyd Guerin, said he heard at least six gunshots from Carter’s home before he saw a man leave the residence, carrying a handgun.

911 CALL

Witness testimony revealed that State Police arrived at Carter’s apartment complex just moments after the murders, after having been summoned there by a 911 call from Howard about 20 minutes earlier.

That 911 call was played in court Monday, leaving many of Howard’s loved ones in tears at the sound of her voice.

In the tape, Howard could be heard calmly telling police that her ex-boyfriend refused to leave Carter’s residence.

“He’s been knocking on the door for 20 minutes now,” Howard told police before they dispatched troopers to what they initially deemed a non-emergency trespass complaint.

While Pavone showed little reaction during most of the day’s testimony, he could been seen trying to hide tears when the tape was played. He later covered his ears and bowed his head not wanting to hear Howard’s call to police.

DAUGHTER ON STAND

Before the tape was played, Howard’s oldest daughter, Sarah, took the stand as the first prosecution witness and recalled how she celebrated her mother’s birthday with a family dinner just hours before the deaths.

She told jurors that her mother and Pavone had broken up about a month earlier, though Carney’s subsequent questioning seemed to suggest that the former couple were still in contact up until her death.

DEMEANOR

Carney also questioned witnesses about Pavone’s demeanor and whether he seemed upset. Light described the 52-year-old former correction sergeant as flustered or agitated, while Davenport recalled him as being calm.

Several members of State Police then testified about their initial arrival at Carter’s home, where they found the bodies and began securing and documenting the area.

So far, eight prosecution witnesses have taken the stand.

Additional witnesses will testify Tuesday morning when the trial resumes.

Email Andrea VanValkenburg at:

avanvalkenburg@pressrepublican.com