It is the kind of thing that happens in every neighborhood.
A dispute. Maybe over a lot boundary. Or a parking space. Or shrubs.
Some times it leads to bitter feelings. And raised voices. It doesn’t usually end in gunfire.
But it did yesterday in Ridley Township.
Now one man is dead, and his stepdaughter is in critical condition. A 72-year-old neighbor is under arrest.
This wasn’t a sudden explosion of anger. This appears to be something that was building. Yesterday it bubbled over.
James Dellavecchia apparently did not like the shed his neighbor was constructing in his yard. Nor the noise that was accompanying it.
The 72-year-old had been complaining to police all summer about the noise emanating from the project, as well as the music that was being played.
Yesterday Dellavecchia apparently decided to take matters into his own hands.
Police say he was lying in wait as Scott Robins left his home just after 6 a.m. What happened next can only be described as an ambush.
Police say Dellavecchia shot Robins several times. Robins’ 23-year-old stepdaugter, Kristen Snow, came out to investigate the commotion and she also was shot.
Robins died at the hospital. Snow continues to fight for her life. Dellavecchia is under arrest.
It’s hard to believe this could happen on a quiet residential street.
For whatever reason, Dellavecchia decided to settle his differences with his neighbor with a gun.
With deadly results.
Sometimes you just shake your head.
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