Two people sentenced to life in prison without parole for the 2023 shooting death of Alice Robson in St. Clair didn’t have much to say to a judge Tuesday.
Melissa Fox-Beacom, 52, shook her head no when Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio gave her an opportunity to speak during a sentencing hearing.
Matthew Bates, 20, said: “Just sorry.”
The pair were convicted in February of first-degree murder, conspiracy, solicitation and abuse of a corpse. Jurors decided that even though they didn’t fire the shots that killed Fox-Beacom’s mother on Dec. 11, 2023, their actions leading up to the shooting made them responsible for her death.
Robson, 71, was fatally shot twice in the head in the living room of her home as she watched television. Her body was found three days later, stuffed in a crawlspace under a porch.
A third co-defendant, Robert Jack, 20, formerly of Fairfield, testified during the trial that he shot Robson while she sat on her couch at the request of Fox-Beacom, of New Florence, and Bates, of Ligonier Township, whom was dating Fox-Beacom’s daughter. Jack and Bates cleaned the bloody scene and dragged Robson’s body through the house, outside and into the crawlspace, according to trial testimony.
Members of Robson’s family were in court Tuesday, but none wanted to testify during the hearing, said Assistant District Attorney Adam Barr, calling it an “incredibly tragic situation.”
“Alice Robson was needlessly and unnecessarily murdered,” he said.
Jack is awaiting a resolution in his case.
During his trial testimony, he told jurors he was offered a deal from prosecutors to plead guilty to a lesser charge of third-degree murder and receive a sentence of 40 to 80 years in prison. However, during a hearing in March, his attorney said a report from a defense-hired psychologist found that Jack was mentally ill on the day of the killing.
As a result, Jack may consider a plea of guilty but mentally ill, which would impact whether he is confined to a state prison or a mental hospital.
Defense attorneys Tim Dawson and Adam Gorzelsky, representing Fox-Beacom and Bates respectively, want to get their hands on that report. The attorneys said it may provide avenues for appeal.
Bilik-DeFazio asked them to work with Jack’s attorney, Ken Noga, to get access to it before filing a petition with the court. Noga said he will see if his client is willing to release the report.
As Fox-Beacom and Bates were ready to be led out of the courtroom at the conclusion of Tuesday’s hearing, Dawson asked if Fox-Beacom could give her father, Lyle Robson, a kiss.
“You’re not permitted to do that, sorry,” Bilik-DeFazio replied.
Trial witnesses said Fox-Beacom regularly discussed animosity toward her mother and expressed a desire for her to be dead.
They testified she wanted to regain custody of her disabled son, collect his disability checks and move into Robson’s Furnace Lane home. She often referred to her mother as “fat cow,” according to testimony.
Alice Robson had custody of her disabled grandson, Fox-Beacom’s son, and a protection-from-abuse order against her daughter. Robson was never seen being abusive, witnesses said.
Fox-Beacom and Bates were ordered to have no contact with Robson’s family and pay $21,780 in restitution, which will be split among the defendants.