The case is Commonwealth v. Gadley, decided May 20 by Judge Mary Murray, joined by Judges Daniel McCaffery and James Gardner Colins of the Pennsylvania Superior Court; here's the trial court's summary of the facts:
At the [June 15, 2021, preliminary] hearing, the Defendant's mother, Melody Blair … testified that on the night of May 29, 2021, the Defendant and his minor daughter (hereafter [M]) were present at their shared residence, along with the Defendant's minor brother (hereinafter [T]). Ms. Blair stated that she reminded the Defendant's daughter to tell the Defendant that her preschool graduation was coming up on June 7. Ms. Blair testified that at this time the Defendant stated, "I'm not going to let that happen. [M.] and I will be out of here by Monday. I'm not letting that happen."
Ms. Blair further testified that after approximately fifteen (15) to twenty (20) minutes, "[M.] went back to my room and I finished what I needed to do for the night, and that's when [the Defendant] made the comment that he was going to kill Alicia … and at one point he said he was going to shoot her." Ms. Blair later clarified that Alicia Zabelsky … is [M]'s mother. She also said that the Defendant did not make any communications specifically to Ms. Zabelsky or any other individuals, except [Ms. Blair]. Ms. Blair also clarified that the Defendant did not state he was going to go to Ms. Zabelsky's [residence] that same night or provide any specific time he anticipated on carrying out his threat. Ms. Blair testified that after a period of time, she went to her bedroom where the [D]efendant followed her and wanted the keys to her vehicle to take [M] from the residence. Ms. Blair stated she then had [T] call her oldest son, Josh, to come to the residence and defuse the situation. Ms. Blair testified that once Josh was contacted by [T], he contacted the police.
Trooper Brian Tanner … of the Pennsylvania State Police responded to the residence[.] Trooper Tanner testified that when he initially questioned the Defendant outside of his residence, he denied stating he was going to kill Ms. Zabelsky. However, Trooper Tanner stated upon transferring the Defendant to the Clarion County Jail, the Defendant made comments regarding Ms. Zabelsky's boyfriend to him. Specifically, Trooper Tanner testified that "[the Defendant] made comments such as, 'This might cost me prison time, but it will cost him his life. They're going to kill me before they take my little girl from me.'" Trooper Tanner stated that the Defendant was asked, "'Were you talking about the boyfriend of [M.'s] mother?' and he [replied], 'Yes.'"
Gadley was charged with misdemeanor terroristic threats, but the trial court dismissed the case, and the appellate court affirmed:
