Justice For Jakob

My 21 year old son was shot and killed on February 26, 2021. We live in a very small county in Central Pennsylvania. The DA just told me on Monday that he is planning to offer a plea to the murderer.

The man that killed my son is from a wealthy family. I found out today that the DA and the father of the murderer graduated from high school together.

I am terrified that Jakob's killer will go free. I have been denied access to the police report. The night of the murder we were told by 2 state troopers that our son "suffered a fatal gunshot wound." We were then immediately told to "go home and contact the coroner in the morning."

There were a minimum of 7 people present at the time of the shooting, though I only know the names of 5, 1 of which was my son.

Does anyone have any similar circumstances, advice or knowledge about ensuring that I am able to get some kind of justice for my son?

 

This is the link to the first article in the local paper.

http://therecord-online.com/site/archives/67002

 

Brewery Hollow Homicide: Gathering with friends ends in death
March 1, 2021
1 minute read




WOODWARD TOWNSHIP, PA – The criminal complaint filed in the shooting death of Jakob Lee Haines last Friday night contains additional details on the incident which ended with the arrest of Brian St. John III, 19, the young man charged with shooting and killing his friend during a gathering at the St. John home atop Brewery Hollow Road in Woodward Township.

Haines, 21, from Beech Creek, was pronounced dead at the scene Friday night by Clinton County Coroner Zach Hanna, about an hour after the 8:30 p.m. shooting.

According to allegations contained in the criminal complaint from investigator/Trooper Timothy Wright, “Several people, including his friend, Jakob Lee Haines, were present for said gathering. At some point during the evening, St. John III removed a Taurus Judge revolver from a kitchen drawer, pointed it at Haines and pulled the trigger. Haines sustained a gunshot wound in the center of his chest, which resulted in his death.”

The complaint states that when police arrived, the accused was kneeling over the victim and applying pressure to his chest. Police advised St. John to go outside. Lock Haven police officer Stephen Nero went outside and asked St. John III what happened. According to the criminal complaint, St. John III replied, “they were inside the house messing around with the gun and it went off.” The complaint allegation said the officer asked who was holding the gun and St. John III said he was.

State police later interviewed several witnesses who observed the shooting; all three, Kylea Noel Yerger, Ross Glossner and Bobby Bowmaster, related they saw the accused point the gun at Haines and “discharge the gun.”

Meanwhile St. John III remains in the Clinton County Correctional Facility since his arrest early Saturday. St. John III has been charged with criminal homicide, aggravated assault and recklessly endangering another person. Clinton County District Attorney Dave Strouse said St. John’s first court appearance is scheduled for Tuesday, March 2 at 8:30 a.m.

 

I'm praying I'll get justice for my son's death, I don't know what happened in the apartment he was in, there calling it sucide but I'm not sure what happened, or dear Lord was there and knows exactly what happened, I will be praying for you and please do the same.

 

So very sorry for the death of your young sons. Grief is bad enough to deal with, but you have so many other concerns involved in this.
It must be so very difficult to deal with all of this. I can't imagine the pain, heaviness, anger, and anxiety you must be feeling.
I had to rely completely on God when we lost our son to suicide. He was 28. I did not think I could get through one day, much less a week. I t seemed impossible to go on and I didn't want to because I wanted to go where he was. But he was not mentally healthy and I was, so I knew God would not accept my doing the same. I did not think I could ever go on, but by the grace of God I did. I had a slow grief walk but just kept waiting and looking for God's help and finally I began to be able to function again.
You have such a load on you. Try to take care of yourself. Take at least a short walk to get fresh air. I read it has healing qualities in it and also it can help relieve the terrible stress you are under.
We care about you hear. Please keep us informed about how you are managing.
I love you.
Chris

 

Hi Chris, happy to hear from you and getting your support, I do go for walks which does help me and seeing the beautiful bright red cardinals I love to hear them sing. It's Christmas time for the forth year which is very hard for me, my son John loved Christmas. The nights are really hard for me as soon as it gets dark. Just please keep praying that I get justice done for John's death, thank you so much for caring your messages help me a lot so please keep them coming.
God Bless,
Vera

 

Hi, Vera. How are things going with your attempt to get justice for your son?

 

Hi Vera. Are you making progress with your attempt to get justice?

 

Hi Chris m 2000, no I haven't made any progress yet for justice for my son's death, keep praying that I do.

 

Hi Chris M 2000, how are things going with you? I'm not having such a good night, crying a lot missing my son John so very much wondering what I could have done different to help him.

 

Just saw your post. I am sorry you are having a hard time. When our son died my husband was troubled for quite a long time and then said he knew he couldn't have done anything else to help him. The note our son left was a big help because he said he knew we had tried to understand his mental anguish. I thought I had understood, but this made me realize I really didn't and probably couldn't have. Until you suffer an anguishing event like this it is impossible to realize the depth of the pain that can occur in a person mentally.
From your account it looks like there wasn't anything possible to you to have done differently either. I know this doesn't help much, but we constantly want to know there was something else we could have done or not done to change what has happened to your son. Apparently he was with friends he had chosen to be with. Of course he could not have known or in his wildest dreams thought one of them could have killed him. It still seems unreal, doesn't it? It takes a long time for us to sort through all the grief. Our mind wants an answer. I finally decided that trying to figure out what I could have done differently was my attempt to bring him back. Through time and many struggles I had to accept that he was not coming back.
Earlier in the week my son had asked me to stay home that day. I told him something special was taking place at work that I felt I had to be there for, but when I was finished midday I would come home after I had taken care of business. If anyone had a reason to feel guilty, I did. A friend of mine who is a school counselor told me that it wouldn't have made any difference because he would just have committed suicide some other time. We grasp at every little straw we read or hear to console ourselves that we could't have done anything else.

 

My son was a big help because he said he knew my husband and I had tried to be good parents.
I wonder if any of us are really good parents. We are human and have such flaws of character brought on by the disobedience of Adam and Eve. None of us are perfect. In fact Jesus said that no one was even good except God. Looking back at my past there are so many things I wish I had known that would have helped me be a better parent. Unfortunately I cannot change anything that has happened.
The scriptures say that all things work together for good to those who love the Lord and are called, according to HIS purpose. Even though we have suffered a terrible unthinkable tragedy, we can turn to God for help.
I remember praying before Shawn was gone that God would increase my compassion. It is only through something like this that we can gain that compassion to help others.
The death of Lazarus seemed like a disaster to his sisters but they didn't know that God was going to use their circumstances to work a miracle. The death of Jesus seems incomprehensible until we realize that God chose this way to demonstrate His great love, compassion, forgiveness, and wisdom. Adam and Eve didn't believe Him, so it took Him coming in the flesh and dying a terrible death in our place, to show us the depth of His love for us. He was my only way back from the great grief I had. I just kept waiting and knowing that only God could help me, and He did. I knew He was my only way back to beginning functioning again.
Please respond and let me know you are okay. At first I couldn't understand why I was still here when Shawn no longer was. I prayed God would take me and even planned a way for my own suicide, but I knew it wasn't acceptable because I was not mentally troubled like my son was. So I kept looking to God to rescue me and He did. This was a long, slow process. Grief like ours doesn't just disappear over a short time. It is a struggle to go on when the one we loved so much is no longer with us.
I know you will make it through this. I know that because I made it when I didn't think I could make it even one day.
I am sending you love and praying you will be able to find peace as time goes on.

 

I asked online if it was legal to withhold the police report from parents in PA. The website avvo.com says that it is not legal to withhold the police report from parents. On the search page for the questions it shows this:
"Not legal
In Pennsylvania, it is not legal to deny a police report to a parent whose son was shot in an apartment." and then refers you to the website for avvo.com.
I don't know if that is true, but you could look at that page and see if there is anything there that would be useful to your search for the truth.
Chris

 

Hi Chris M 2000, I thought I did everything I could to help my son John, as my brother-in-law told me you can't do something about something you know nothing about and he's right, when John was in the hospital he said he was so sick and he didn't want me to go to the hospital to see him like he was, I had severely broken my ankle and Covid was going on and my husband had to help me the doctor had to do surgery and put a plate and screws in my ankle or I wouldn't be able to walk again he said and then my leg was in a cast for 6 months it was a long recovery, John needed me and I couldn't help him I felt so helpless, how could things have gone so wrong I keep wondering. John had Schizohonia one of the most horrible illnesses I can't imagine what that is like since I don't have it I believe John got the illness from his father I remember how John's father treated me called me horrible names and would beat me and threatened me I had to get John and I away from him my husband was John's Stepfather, John's father died in 2016 in Mass I tried to find out what he died from but his sister would never answer my phone calls and tell me what happened to John's father her brother so I guess I'll never know. Thank you so very much for your support, I wish you lived near me and we could go out for lunch and support each other. Every Wednesday was Mother and Son day John would take me out for lunch and anywhere else I wanted to go I really miss those times with John my husband takes me out for lunch or dinner but it's not the same. You sound like a real good Christian and believe in the Lord like I do I don't go to Church because I can't find the right Church to go to I grew up in a Baptist Church.
Keep praying I can find peace with John's death. Keep in touch.
God Bless,
Vera

 

Hi, Vera. Thanks for your response. I, too, wish we lived close so we could meet and support each other. I live in the NC mountains. Maybe some day it will be possible to meet.
I do pray you will be able to find peace with John's death.
May God bless and strengthen you,
Chris