Thomas J. Petrousky must spend the rest of his life behind state prison bars for killing his roommate in April 2014 in West Mahanoy Township, a Schuylkill County judge ruled Tuesday.
Petrousky, 55, of Altamont, will serve life in prison for the fatal beating of David R. Halaburda, President Judge William E. Baldwin decided. The life sentence is mandatory under state law and does not include a chance for parole.
Petrousky said nothing either during or after Tuesday’s sentencing hearing.
“He’s elected to remain silent this morning,” Chief Public Defender Michael J. Stine, Petrousky’s lawyer, told Baldwin. “I don’t have anything else to present.”
Deputy Assistant District Attorney Robert I. Lipkin confined his argument to asking Baldwin to impose the life sentence and order restitution.
After a three-day trial, a Schuylkill County jury convicted Petrousky on March 9 of first-degree murder, possessing instruments of crime, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person and two counts of aggravated assault.
West Mahanoy Township police charged Petrousky with fatally beating Halaburda, 50, on April 28, 2014, in the 256 S. Wylam St. residence the men shared.
Police said Petrousky piled numerous items, including a mounted deer head, on top of Halaburda’s body, and put a T-shirt over his own blood-stained sweatshirt to try to conceal his crime. They also said there were bloodstains, including bloody shoe prints, all over the first floor of the residence.
Stine had argued at trial that Petrousky was legally insane at the time he killed Halaburda, and thereby not legally responsible for what he had done. Stine also said his client had a history of mental illness.
After Tuesday’s hearing, Stine said he would file an appeal on behalf of his client but otherwise declined to comment on the case.
District Attorney Christine A. Holman said the two prosecutors, Assistant District Attorney A.J. Serina and First Assistant District Attorney John T. Fegley, did a fine job presenting the case.
Under the terms of Baldwin’s sentence, Petrousky also must pay costs and $7,622.50 restitution to the state police crime laboratory in Bethlehem and submit a DNA sample to law enforcement authorities.
Defendant: Thomas J. Petrousky
Age: 55
Residence: Altamont
Crimes committed: First-degree murder, possessing instruments of crime, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person and two counts of aggravated assault
Prison sentence: Life