kstephens@altoonamirror.com
HOLLIDAYSBURG About 90 Blair County Prison inmates who previously tested negative for COVID-19 are in the process of being tested again, Warden Abbie Tate told the county prison board Thursday.
With 132 inmates having tested positive for COVID-19, the county prison remains in what Tate calls a “modified lockdown,” which restricts inmate movement within the facility as a way to keep the coronavirus from spreading.
As new COVID-19 test results come back for the inmates who previously tested negative, the prison staff will evaluate the situation and decide if more out-of-cell time can be granted, Tate said.
In the meantime, the lockdown also means the prison and the county court will need to continue to rely on computerized video connections for inmates attempting to address criminal charges in court proceedings.
kstephens@altoonamirror.com
HOLLIDAYSBURG A Blair County judge has ruled that first-degree murder and related criminal charges pending against a 17-year-old Altoonan will remain in adult court.
President Judge Elizabeth Doyle recently denied a request on behalf of Owen Scott Southerland, who petitioned the court to have the criminal charges filed against him addressed in juvenile court.
The judge, in making her ruling, said she considered “the totality of the factors” to be weighed in evaluating Southerland’s petition, without greater or lesser weight to any specific factor.
“In conclusion, the defendant has not met his burden of proving, by a preponderance of the evidence, that transfer to the juvenile court system best serves the public interest and/or that he is amenable to treatment,” the judge wrote.