Update: Sumner Sentenced To Life In Prison
Updated on June 18, 2024 at 2:45 pm: On Monday, June 17, Tyler Sumner was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for one count of murder in the first degree.
For one count of possession of ammunition without FID card, the defendant was sentenced to two years in the House of Corrections to be served concurrent with the one count of murder in the first degree.
Sumner was sentenced in front of Judge Flannery Berkshire Superior Court for one count of murder in the first degree.
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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — An Adams man was found guilty in the 2019 murder of 32-year-old Stephanie Olivieri, a Pittsfield native and mother of two.
A jury found Tyler Sumner, 30, guilty on Friday of murder in the first degree and possession of ammunition without a Firearm Identification Card.
The trial was held in Berkshire Superior Court. Judge Francis Flannery will schedule sentencing.
"Today justice was served in the tragic death of an innocent bystander, Stephanie Olivieri; however, this guilty verdict will do nothing to bring her back," said Berkshire District Attorney Timothy Shugrue. "Tyler Sumner murdered Ms. Olivieri while she sat in a car filled with gifts and decorations for her child's birthday. She was preparing to celebrate a wonderful event when her life was ruthlessly cut short."
Olivieri, who had been living in Yonkers, N.Y., was found sitting in her running car on Columbus Avenue when police responded to reports of masked men near South John Street and heard gunshots on the way.
The officers found Olivieri gasping for breath and blood running down the right side of her head. She was treated by emergency medical services and then transported to Berkshire Medical Center, where she was later pronounced dead. The Chief Medical Examiner found the cause of her death to be a homicide caused by wounds sustained from a bullet to her head.
Multiple individuals testified that they believed Sumner was targeting an individual living in the area of the shooting and that Olivieri was not the intended target.
Police recovered items at and around the crime scene, including eight spent shell casings on the ground surrounding the car and a broken passenger side window; video surveillance from multiple residences and businesses; clothing and DNA; witnesses present at the time of the crime; individuals with suspected knowledge of what occurred; recorded calls from the Hampden County House of Corrections, and a singular text message exchange in which Sumner instructs the owner to get rid of a black Chevrolet Malibu, of which officers were able to take custody.
Video surveillance obtained by law enforcement showed a black sedan (the Malibu) circling the area for hours prior to the shooting, flashes of light consisten with gun shots, three figures running away from where the shots were fired and individuals getting in and out of a dark sedan and its travel along several streets.
Tags: murder,
