Also, verdicts and sentences in assault on correctional officers, prohibited gun, Dover robbery

Ryan Shover, 46, of York, PA, was convicted by a jury of Murder First Degree (intentional murder), Murder First Degree (felony murder), 2 counts of Possession of a Deadly Weapon During Commission of a Felony, Insurance Fraud and Conspiracy First Degree for murdering Wayne Cappelli in 2013. Cappelli was attacked on Delaview Avenue and killed with a baseball bat as he walked home from his job on February 16, 2013, and his body was found in a wooded area a few days later. The investigation revealed that three friends, Michael Kman, David Hess and Paul Disabatino, had talked Cappelli into taking out a life insurance policy. In November 2012, Cappelli made Disabatino the beneficiary of the $360,000 policy, with the intent that Disabatino would look after Cappelli’s child. Kman enlisted Shover to commit the murder and be paid $30,000 from the insurance benefits. After the murder, Disabatino, with the aid of Kman, attempted to collect the insurance money.  Those efforts were not successful as the criminal investigation developed. Eventually, Chancery Court awarded the money in trust to Cappelli’s child.  Hess and Disabatino pled guilty in January 2016 to Criminally Negligent Homicide, Insurance Fraud and Conspiracy First Degree.  Hess was sentenced to 5 years in jail and Disabatino is pending sentencing. Michael Kman pled guilty to Murder Second Degree, Insurance Fraud and Conspiracy 1st Degree on December 2017 and Kman’s sentence is pending. Shover will also be sentenced at a later date. Deputy Attorneys General John Downs and Danielle Brennan prosecuted the case, with DOJ Paralegal Stacey Coupe and DOJ Investigator Cliff Dempsey. Sgt. Tom Orzechowski of New Castle County Police was the lead investigator. DOJ Social Worker Courtney Cochran supported the victim’s family through the investigation and trial.

Gregory Parker, 53, of New Castle was sentenced to 25 years in prison on his convictions for Murder 2nd Degree and Possession of a Deadly Weapon During the Commission of a Felony.  Parker, who had no prior criminal convictions, pled guilty in November 2017 to the 2016 fatal beating of Shawn Spence in Mallard Pointe near New Castle.  New Castle County Police Department found Spence inside Parker’s residence bludgeoned to death.  Parker fled Delaware and remained at large until his arrest by the U.S. Marshal Service six months later in New York City.

Deputy Attorney General Jamie McCloskey secured a 6-year prison sentence for a Dover man who attacked correctional officers at a probation center. Xavier Spady, 26, of Dover, was an inmate at Central Violation of Probation Center when he refused a correctional sergeant’s orders to enter his cell and began fighting with him in January 2017. A correctional corporal who was responding to the altercation was thrown into a wall, resulting in a head injury. Spady pled guilty to Assault in a Detention Facility and Attempted Assault in a Detention Facility.  He was sentenced to 6 years in jail on those charges, followed by probation.

Keenan Anderson, 26, of Wilmington faces 23 years to life in prison for weapons convictions. Wilmington Police Department officers stopped Anderson in the 600 block of West 7th Street in May 2017 in reference to being wanted. While officers patted him down, they discovered a handgun on his person. Anderson was convicted of Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited and Carrying a Concealed Deadly Weapon. Anderson is also facing charges from 2017 in two pending cases involving a shooting and a carjacking. Deputy Attorneys General Zach Rosen and Periann Doko prosecuted the case assisted by DOJ paralegal Jessica Ascione and DOJ investigator Guillermo Santiago.

A 40-year old Dover man was found guilty in bifurcated jury trials on charges of Robbery 1^st Degree, Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited, Assault 3^rd Degree, Theft of Firearm, and Conspiracy 2^nd Degree for an attack in downtown Dover. In September 2016, Pierre Downs and accomplices assaulted and robbed a man after leaving the Golden Fleece Tavern. Downs, a habitual offender, is facing 40 years of mandatory jail time because of the convictions from this case. He is a habitual offender based on previous convictions involving weapon possessions and felony theft. Sentencing is scheduled for April 6, 2018. Deputy Attorneys General Dennis Kelleher and Alicia Porter prosecuted the case.

DNREC and Delaware’s Division of Public Health will participate

DOVER – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, with support from the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC), will hold a public meeting on the proposed listing of the Hockessin Groundwater Site to the National Priorities List (NPL). The NPL is EPA’s list of sites eligible for remedial action financed under the federal Superfund program. The meeting will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 13, at 6:30 p.m. at Hockessin Memorial Hall, at 610 Yorklyn Road, in Hockessin.

In 2002, DNREC took action to ensure that the public drinking water in the area – which is provided by the Artesian Water Company – is treated to remove contaminants and meets state and federal drinking water standards. Subsequently, DNREC requested additional assistance from EPA in 2016 to help fully investigate the area. The proposed listing will allow EPA to use Superfund authority and resources to work with DNREC to identify the sources of contamination and help resolve the groundwater concerns in the Hockessin area.

“Superfund cleanup in our communities continues to be a priority at EPA as we work to create a safer and healthier environment,” said EPA Mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator Cosmo Servidio. “This public hearing provides Hockessin-area residents a valuable opportunity to learn about the site and to provide comments on the proposed listing to the NPL.”

“Delaware values the collaboration with EPA on investigating the Hockessin Groundwater Site,” said DNREC Secretary Shawn M. Garvin. “The meeting on the proposed NPL listing offers reassurance to the Hockessin community that we will continue working together to identify the source for contaminants in the groundwater at the site.”

The primary groundwater contaminant of concern in the Hockessin area is tetrachloroethylene (PCE), most commonly used as a dry-cleaning solvent and industrial degreaser. PCE, a Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) which can cause adverse human health effects, was identified in a commercial irrigation well, three residential wells, and several public supply wells in the Artesian Water Company’s Hockessin well field. DNREC’s previous actions included installing water treatment systems at the three residential properties impacted by the contamination.

DNREC is working with several potentially responsible parties, and has completed numerous environmental investigations and remedial efforts at sites of potential concern to help determine the extent and potential source(s) of the contamination.

EPA will discuss the proposed listing of the site to the NPL at the public meeting. Representatives from the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry and the Delaware Division of Public Health will join EPA and DNREC to answer health-related questions.

EPA has opened a public comment period through March 19. Comments can be submitted online at: http://www.regulations.gov or by mail sent to:

US EPA Docket Center
NPL Notice of Proposed Hockessin Groundwater Site
Docket ID # EPA-HQ-OLEM-2017-0604
Mail Code 28221T
Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20460

For residents with questions regarding the proposed listing, visit: www.epa.gov/superfund/hockessingroundwater or contact: EPA community involvement coordinator Alexander Mandell, 215-814-5517, or by email at: Mandell.Alexander@epa.gov .

For more information regarding the previous DNREC investigations at the Hockessin Groundwater Site, please visit
www.dnrec.delaware.gov/dwhs/SIRB/Pages/Hockessin-Ground-Water-Plume-Site.aspx or contact:
Timothy Ratsep, Administrator; Paul Will, Program Manager; or Christina Wirtz, Outreach Ombudsman
DNREC Site Investigation and Restoration Section
302-395-2600
Email: Timothy.Ratsep@delaware.gov; Paul.Will@delaware.gov or Christina.Wirtz@delaware.gov

Media contacts: Michael Globetti, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902
Roy Seneca, EPA Region 3 Press Office, seneca.roy@epa.gov, 215-814-5567

Vol. 48, No. 19

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The Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) has added two electric vehicles (EV) to its fleet as part of a new pilot program. Adding the two EVs will help the department assess the sustainability, ease of use, and maintenance of these vehicles compared to the department’s traditional fossil fueled light duty fleet vehicles.

The two Ford Focus Electric vehicles have a range of roughly 70 – 100 miles per charge, and will be based at DelDOT’s Danner Campus in Dover where an EV charging station has been installed. Replacing a gas car with an electric vehicle is estimated to save 4.7 metric tons of carbon emissions annually.

“When most people think of DelDOT vehicles, they think of large trucks like our snow plows and construction equipment which are largely diesel powered. Not all of our work requires the use of large, fossil fuel vehicles, so this is an opportunity for us to be more environmentally conscious and evaluate the usage of EVs as a fleet vehicle,” said Secretary of Transportation Jennifer Cohan.

The addition of the two electric vehicles, costing $27,299 each, brings the total number of EVs in the state fleet to a total of five, with the other three currently in use by DNREC’s Division of Energy and Climate. DelDOT is thankful for the technical assistance, cooperation, and financial support of the Division of Natural Resources (DNREC) in the installation of the charging stations at the Danner Campus, and will continue to work with DNREC on environmentally friendly initiatives.

In recent years, states such as Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, as well as numerous municipalities have launched initiatives to incorporate EVs in their fleets to reduce emissions and fuel costs.

Reminder for the week: State game refuges

DOVER – To achieve public compliance with laws and regulations through education and enforcement actions that help conserve Delaware’s fish and wildlife resources and ensure safe boating and public safety, Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police officers between Jan. 22-28 made 2,171 contacts with hunters, anglers, boaters and the general public, issuing 38 citations. Officers responded to 47 complaints regarding possible violations of laws and regulations or requests to assist the public. An increased Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police presence continued at the C&D Canal Conservation Area and Michael N. Castle Trail.

Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police in the Community

• On Jan. 28, Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police officers presented information on hunting, fishing, and boating at a Hunter Education Course at the Fish & Wildlife Ommelanden Hunter Education Center near New Castle.

Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police Actions

Incidents of note:

• On Jan. 22, Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police officers cited Joseph B. Cahall, 40, of New Castle, and Gerald McLaughlin, 29, of Newark, with one count each of hunting on a refuge and prohibited hunting device (bait) following an investigation into illegal waterfowl hunting near Newport. Cahall was additionally charged with one count of possession of unlawfully taken game. Cahall was fined $495, including court costs, and released. McLaughlin was fined $330, including court costs, and released.
• On Jan. 23, Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police officers arrested Christopher P. Wisler, 37, of West Chester, Pa., for one count of license forgery or misinterpretation and two counts of non-resident possession of game following an investigation into illegal deer hunting and hunting license forgery near Smyrna. Wisler was arraigned at New Castle County Justice of the Peace Court 9, where he plead guilty, was fined $1,001, including court costs and released.
• On Jan. 24, Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police officers arrested Daniel Picone, 55, of Harrington, for one count of criminal trespass third degree and two counts of wanton waste after an investigation into illegal waterfowl hunting near Harrington. Picone was arraigned at Kent County Justice of the Peace Court 7 where he plead guilty, was fined $121, including court costs, and released.

Citations issued by category, with the number of charges in parentheses, included:

Wildlife Conservation: Hunting on a refuge (5), prohibited hunting device (bait) (5), possession of unlawfully taken game (7), license forgery or misinterpretation (1), non-resident possession of game (2), wanton waste (2), hunting migratory waterfowl with illegal toxic lead shot (3), hunting migratory waterfowl within 1500 feet of an established blind (1), possession of over the limit Canadian Geese (4), trespassing to hunt (2), hunting migratory waterfowl without required HIP number (2), and unlicensed hunting (1).

Other: Trespassing after hours on a state wildlife area (2) and criminal trespass third degree (1).

DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife recognizes and thanks the majority of anglers, hunters and boaters who comply with and support Delaware’s fishing, hunting and boating laws and regulations. Citizens are encouraged to report fish, wildlife and boating violations to the Delaware Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police by calling 302-739-4580. Wildlife violations may also be reported anonymously to Operation Game Theft by calling 800-292-3030 or online at de.gov/ogt.

Are you AWARE?
Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police want to remind the public that all state lands, except as otherwise provided in the link below, and state, county and municipal parks in Delaware shall be state game refuges and no person shall hunt these lands and parks or injure any game animal at any time of the year.

For a list of public hunting areas within each county of the state, please visit the 2017-2018 Delaware Hunting & Trapping Guide.

Follow Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police on Facebook, www.facebook.com/DEFWNRPolice/.

Follow Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police on Twitter, twitter.com/DE_FW_NRPolice.

Contact: Sgt. Brooke Africa, 302-382-7167, or Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police, 302-739-9913

Secretary of Education to honor school bus drivers and aides

Secretary of Education Susan Bunting, joined by Capital School District Superintendent Dan Shelton, will thank bus drivers and bus aides at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 13 at William Henry Middle School as part of the state’s celebration of the 11th annual national Love the Bus program this month.

Governor John Carney issued a proclamation recognizing school bus drivers and aides for their contributions to safe school transportation.

The Love the Bus program, founded in 2007 and coordinated by the American School Bus Council (ASBC), is celebrated on Valentine’s Day, and throughout February, in school communities across the country as a way to raise awareness and appreciation for the hundreds of thousands of school bus drivers who safely transport more than 25 million school children to and from school each day. It is also an opportunity for families and children to learn more about the safety and environmental benefits of school bus transportation.

Delawareans are encouraged to share their love online with the hashtag #DElovesthebus.

William Henry Middle School is located at 65 Carver Road in Dover.

Media Contact: Alison May, alison.may@doe.k12.de.us, 302-735-4006