Convicted 2015 Monroeville Mall shooter will serve original sentence, Superior Court says

A Superior Court ruling on Thursday upheld a sentence of 15 to 30 years in prison for a convicted Penn Hills man that wounded three people after opening fire in the Monroeville Mall in 2015.

Tarod Thornhill, now 23, will serve his original punishment of 15 to 30 years in prison, a decision from the Superior Court said. The sentence is based on Thornhill’s conviction of three counts of aggravated assault, four counts of recklessly endangering another person, possession of a firearm by a minor and carrying a firearm without a license.

Thornhill fired six shots and hit three people, including two bystanders, inside the mall’s Macy store on Feb. 7, 2015. The incident occurred after he and the third victim, Davon Jones, exchanged words. Thornhill was 17 at the time.

Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey Manning handed down the sentence in January 2017. Thornhill appealed his sentence in November 2019, stating the court “failed to give meaningful consideration to his youth and mental health issues when it fashioned its sentence,” according to court filings.

He also argued in court documents that the sentence “appears to be solely based on the gravity of the offense in relation to the impact on the victim and the community.”

Prior to sentencing, Thornhill’s father addressed the court when he said he believed the shooting would have never happened had his son taken his mental health medication that day.

Two psychiatrists reported during Thornhill’s bench trial that he had a history of “psychiatric issues such as chronic adjustment disorder with mixed disturbance of emotional conduct and chronic post-traumatic stress disorder,” the Superior Court’s ruling said.

In its ruling Thursday, the Superior Court acknowledged Thornhill’s appeal and arguments. But it said Manning considered all the factors that go into sentencing in a “thoughtful way.”

“While it may not have given them the weight Thornhill contends it ought to have, that does not make the sentence excessive,” the ruling stated.

Thornhill remains jailed at the State Correctional Institute in Pine Grove, court dockets show.