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The man accused of fatally stabbing a city developer near Rittenhouse Square last month will not be charged with first-degree murder, opening the possibility for him to be released from jail while awaiting trial and all but eliminating the potential of a life sentence.
Assistant DA Lou Tumolo told Municipal Court Judge Charles Hayden on Wednesday that prosecutors intend to proceed with charges of third-degree murder, voluntary manslaughter, and possessing an instrument of crime in the case against Michael White, 21, accused of killing Sean Schellenger during an argument July 12 on the 1700 block of Chancellor Street.
Top prosecutor Larry Krasner, who attended the hearing, said afterward that “there is not evidence to support” first-degree murder, which requires prosecutors to prove that the defendant intended to kill and carries an automatic sentence of life in prison.
Krasner also told reporters that the office was still investigating and that prosecutors ultimately could withdraw any murder count and charge White just with voluntary manslaughter.
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