Suspect In Daugherty Murder Testifies Against Co-Defendant
GREENSBURG (KDKA) -- One of the suspects facing charges in the torture and murder of Jennifer Daugherty took the stand against Angela Marinucci, the youngest person charged in the case.
Amber Meidinger was in tears on the stand as she described to the jury how Daugherty trusted and liked the people now accused of killing her.
Meidinger, facing first degree murder charges, testified against the advice of her attorneys because she wanted Daugherty's family to know what really happened in the final hours of her life.
She said she didn't know most of the "Greensburg 6" until hours before the torture began when Ricky Smyrnes offered she and her fiancé, Melvin Knight, a place to stay.
Hours later, Meidinger said it all began when she and the others thought it would be funny to pour mouthwash in Jennifer Daugherty's purse, but things quickly escalated to murder as Marinucci became increasingly jealous of Daugherty's relationship with Ricky Smyrnes.
Marinucci sat at the counsel table with her head in hands during testimony. Earlier on Thursday, jurors heard from a jailhouse snitch that said Marinucci has been in good spirits since the trial began earlier this week.
"Happy, no remorse," Felisha Hardison, a witness for the prosecution, said. "Jumping up and down, being happy that she's going to be on the news."
Another jailhouse snitch says Marinucci claimed Daugherty's death was a sacrifice to Satan.
"Miss Marinucci told me that Ricky Smyrnes was into devil worshiping and in an attempt to win him back, they decided, well, Miss Angie Marinucci decided to use her hair and blood as a sacrifice to Satan," the snitch told KDKA-TV.
Meidinger could face the death penalty if she is convicted. She says she does not have a deal in place with prosecutors.
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