Man Convicted Of Killing Johns Hopkins Researcher Files Appeal
BALTIMORE (AP) -- A man convicted of fatally stabbing a Johns Hopkins researcher during a robbery has appealed his conviction.
John Wagner was convicted in August of stabbing Stephen Pitcairn, 23, to death. Pitcairn was walking home from Penn Station, talking on a cell phone to his mother when he was killed in July 2010.
Wagner has insisted he had no part in the killing and that the true killer is still at large. The Baltimore Sun reports Wagner filed documents last week with the Maryland Court of Special Appeals to contest his conviction.
Wagner was sentenced last month to life in prison.
Lavelva Merritt, Wagner's former girlfriend, has pleaded guilty to related robbery charges in exchange for her testimony against Wagner. She was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Information from: The Baltimore Sun, http://www.baltimoresun.com
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
