ALLEGED TEENAGE MURDERER WAIVES RIGHT TO HEARING

By DEBRA HAIGHT
BCR Correspondent
NILES – There was action in two high profile court cases in recent weeks. The man accused of robbing several central county armed robberies last year has pleaded guilty in advance of a mid-September trial, while the man accused of a 2022 murder of a Niles teen has waived his right to a preliminary hearing.
Edward Deontae Turner had been scheduled to go to trial this week before accepting a plea deal in late August. He is now scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 20.
Turner, 39, Berrien Springs, pleaded guilty to two counts of armed robbery, one count of felon in possession of a firearm and one count of receiving, concealing or possession of a stolen firearm.
Turner had originally been charged with 13 counts, including two additional armed robbery counts, three more counts of felon in possession of a firearm and four counts of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. He had also been charged with being a habitual offender.

The incidents occurred between June 25 and Nov. 14 of last year. The June 25 armed robbery was at the Dollar General in Oronoko Township, the Sept. 6 incident at the Dollar General in Royalton Township, the Oct. 10 incident at the Dollar General in Benton Township and the Nov. 14 incident at the BP gas station in Oronoko Township.
During a preliminary hearing last year, employees of the different stores each described the robber as wearing a mask and brandishing a gun. They were each threatened with being shot and told to get money out of cash registers and safes. The robber took the money and ran out of the stores.
Turner was arrested after the Nov. 14 incident on M-139 near Red Bud Trail. A search of his residence found a gun, disposable gloves and a bank bag stolen from the BP gas station. A search of his vehicle uncovered the gray backpack.
Turner pled guilty to the Oct. 10 and Nov. 14 armed robberies. He also admitted to being in possession of a stolen firearm at his home. He said that the weapon he used in the armed robberies was actually an Airsoft gun and not a real gun but acknowledged that those he robbed likely thought it was a real gun.
Berrien County Assistant Prosecutor Myrene Koch said that no sentencing agreement had been made in the case between the parties. She said afterwards that a preliminary look at the sentencing guidelines would seem to indicate that the range will be 171 to 285 months or 14.25 years to 23.75 years.
If Turner had gone to trial and been convicted of all the charges, he would have likely faced a sentencing guideline range of 225 to 750 months or 18.75 to 62.5 years.
The armed robbery count carries a maximum penalty of life in prison or any term of years, the stolen weapon count carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and the felon in possession count carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
The dismissed felony firearm count would have added another two years to his sentence if convicted and the habitual offender designation would have also contributed to the higher sentencing guidelines if he had gone to trial.
A former Dowagiac resident already in prison in Indiana for the 2022 murder of two Niles women will now face trial later this year for the 2022 death of a Niles teen at a Niles apartment complex in Niles.
The case against Rease David Pence had been set for a preliminary hearing last week in Berrien County Trial Court before he decided to waive the hearing and go to trial.
Pence, now 20, formerly of Dowagiac and Niles, will next be in court on Oct. 15 for a case conference and Nov. 17 for a status conference before the jury trial which is scheduled to start Dec. 3. He remains in the Berrien County Jail on no bond.
Several witnesses had been set to testify last week included police investigating the incident and eyewitnesses to the events of May 12, 2022 at the Arbor Trails apartment complex on North Fifth Street in Niles.
The police report on the incident indicated that witnesses reported that four teenagers were walking outside one of the buildings when a pickup truck pulled up and a person wearing a red ski mask got out. He confronted the four teens and a fistfight ensued before he allegedly pulled out a gun and fired three times.
The court records indicated that a 14 year old juvenile, Gavin Blankenship, was shot in the incident and later died from his injuries. Pence was identified as a person of interest in the investigation.
Pence had not been arraigned on murder and other charges until last month. He was convicted after this incident of the 2022 murders of two Niles women in northern St. Joseph County just south of the state line and is serving a prison sentence in that case.
Pence faces four counts in this case: one count each of open murder, carrying a concealed weapon, receiving, concealing or possession of a stolen vehicle and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
He faces a maximum of life in prison if convicted of murder, five years on the weapon and stolen vehicle charges and a consecutive two year term for the felony firearm.