Witness in Finleyville homicide held in contempt for refusing to testify
A witness who refused to testify at a hearing in the fatal shooting of a man outside a Finleyville bar in October was held in contempt of court and ordered to serve five days in jail.
President Judge John DiSalle held Elijah White in contempt Thursday after he refused to answer any questions during the preliminary hearing last month for Keaundre Crews, who is charged with homicide in the Oct. 10 shooting death of 29-year-old Jaisen Irwin outside of Bob’s Tavern.
During the Dec. 9 preliminary hearing, White invoked his Fifth Amendment rights multiple times when questioned on the stand by Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh. Walsh asked District Judge Phillippe Melograne to hold White in contempt during the hearing, but the magistrate said he did not have the power to do so and allowed the witness to leave the stand without testifying. However, Melograne told White at the preliminary hearing that he could be held in contempt by a Court of Common Pleas judge at a later date.
It’s not clear what White, 24, of Donora, initially told investigators or what exactly he would’ve testified to in the preliminary hearing. In addition to jail time, DiSalle ordered White to comply with future subpoenas in the homicide case after he’s released from jail Tuesday.
Despite White’s refusal to cooperate at the preliminary hearing, Melograne found that there was enough other evidence to order Crews to stand trial in the homicide. Crews, 29, of Fallowfield Township, is facing felony charges of homicide, criminal conspiracy, prohibited possession of a firearm and carrying a firearm without a license. He is being held without bond at the Washington County jail.
Monongahela police said Crews fatally shot Irwin while the victim was sitting in a parked car with Maurissa Larae Spencer outside of Bob’s Tavern on Route 88. Spencer drove away from the scene, but left Irwin’s body on the side of Washington Avenue less than a mile away from the shooting, investigators said. She never called police for help and later ditched the car in Union Township.
Spencer, 23, of South Park, is facing charges of homicide, hindering apprehension, tampering with physical evidence and reckless endangerment in connection to Irwin’s death. She also is jailed without bond while awaiting trial in the case.