Men avoid retrial, enter pleas in slaying of Penn Hills teenager

Two men accused of killing a Penn Hills teenager more than three years ago avoided a retrial this week by entering a new plea.

Deontae Nalls, 24, of Plum, pleaded guilty to third-degree murder on Wednesday, while Daeshuan Smith, 23, of Penn Hills, entered no-contest plea to a charge of conspiracy to commit third-degree murder.

The men were charged in the 2021 shooting death of Darin Hobdy, 17.

As part of the plea agreement, Nalls was sentenced to serve 3½ to seven years in state prison, with credit for more than three years at Allegheny County Jail while awaiting trial.

Smith was sentenced to 2½ to five years in state prison, also with credit for time served. Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Thomas E. Flaherty ordered Smith to be paroled within 48 hours.

Both men must also serve five years probation that will commence once their prison sentences have concluded.

Hobdy was found with multiple gunshot wounds about 10:40 p.m. May 23, 2021, on Vantine Street in Wilkinsburg. Casings from two weapons — a .40-caliber and 9 mm — were recovered at the scene.

The two defendants believed Hobdy was involved in a burglary at Nalls’ apartment two days earlier in which $30,000 in cash, a pound of marijuana and an assault rifle were stolen, prosecutors said during the first trial in April.

However, that trial ended with a split verdict and accusations by defense attorneys of wrongdoing in the investigation.

On the third day of trial, it was revealed that one of the guns used to kill Hobdy had been recovered in a traffic stop four months later. However, neither the lead detective nor prosecutor knew of its existence. Before testimony started that morning, defense attorneys received a “hit report” from the county crime lab showing that the handgun found in a West Mifflin traffic stop matched one of the ones used to kill Hobdy.

A supervisor in the Allegheny County Police homicide unit received the report on Sept. 21, 2021, and forwarded it to detectives a half-hour later, but none of them saw it or followed up.

At the time, Smith’s attorney, Casey White, called it “a miscarriage of justice,” while Owen , who represents Nalls, said it was a question of fundamental fairness.

Despite the defense objections, the trial continued.

However, the jury returned a split verdict.

It found both men not guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder. But the panel could not reach a unanimous decision on third-degree murder, splitting 10 to 2 in favor of acquittal.

The prosecution said it would retry the case, which was set to occur this week. However, on Wednesday, both men decided to change their plea.

Defense attorneys for Smith and Nalls said that the offer extended by the prosecution took into account all of the evidentiary issues that were present in the first trial.

“I believe that paved the way for us to come to a sentence agreement,” White said.

His client believed it was time to put the matter behind him, especially since he had been in custody for more than 2½ years.

“The negotiated sentence agreement and the ‘no contest’ plea brings closure for him personally and he hopes the same for the Hobdy family,” White said.

Seman said he told Nalls that there were risks in having a second trial because the problems regarding the information about the gun would not still exist.

“I had to explain this is not going to be the same trial we had before,” Seman said. “All parties believe this was an appropriate way of resolving the case despite it not making everyone happy.”

Both defendants expressed remorse during the plea hearing.

On Friday, Kasey Reigner, a spokeswoman for the county police, said that because the issue with the gun occurred at trial, the department has addressed it.

“Considering the human error, we have added an additional layer of supervisory review when it comes to such notifications,” she said.

At Wednesday’s hearing, Flaherty heard victim impact statements from Hobdy’s mother and grandmother.

Norma Jean Allen told the judge that her grandson was a peacemaker who always wanted everyone to get along. He saw the best in people and was willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

The 17-year-old student could talk for hours, loved to learn and had a beautiful smile, she said.

People were drawn to his light and positive energy.

Ebony Hobdy recounted to the judge how her son would ask her to fry chicken for him late at night and always looked forward to her making Thanksgiving dinner.

She described her son as loyal, patient, kind and funny.

Looking at her son’s pictures breaks her heart, Ebony Hobdy said, and she wishes he could see her making the dean’s list in nursing school and getting remarried to a man he would approve of.

“All he ever wanted was for me to be happy,” she said.