Judge disqualifies Mahoning County assistant prosecutor from murder case
YOUNGSTOWN - A Mahoning County judge has removed Assistant Prosecutor Dawn Cantalamessa from a murder case amid allegations of prosecutorial misconduct made by a defense attorney.
The decision came Monday in a ten-page decision from Common Pleas Judge John Durkin who is presiding over the case of Levontae Knight, who along with George Guiterrez is accused of fatally shooting Joshua Donatelli in 2018.
In his ruling, Judge Durkin found that Cantalamessa made a false statement to the court by denying that Guiterrez had named Knight as the shooter in the crime.
Durkin also criticized Cantalamessa for failing to tell the defense about a plea deal offered to Guiterrez.
The judge was especially critical of Cantalamessa’s failure to review the case file, which would have revealed more than two years ago, information that an eyewitness to the shooting failed to identify Knight in a photo array lineup of the suspects in the case.
"This failure, especially given the defendant's repeated requests for additional evidence concerning the eyewitness, can best be characterized as a careless indifference to ascertaining the truth,” wrote Judge Durkin.
The judge did not dismiss the case against Knight but did disqualify Cantalamessa from prosecuting the case.
The ruling may be read below:
