Chestnuthill Twp. man convicted of fatally stabbing brother

Matthew Crothers leaves the courtroom Wednesday in the Monroe County Courthouse after being found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the 2014 stabbing death of his brother. (Andrew Scott/Pocono Record)

By Andrew Scott  Pocono Record Writer

The Crothers family lost one son and brother who died after being stabbed in their Chestnuthill Township home in 2014.

Now, the family has lost their other son and brother, whom a jury convicted Wednesday of voluntary manslaughter in that stabbing.

The emotional stress was too much for Gabrielle Crothers to be present in the courtroom when the jury announced its verdict in the case of her son, Matthew Crothers, who was charged in the death of David Crothers.

However, her daughter, Gabrielle Crothers, and husband, David Crothers, after whom his older son was named, sat together in court, holding hands. Father and daughter exhaled in relief when the jury announced "not guilty" of first-degree murder and third-degree murder.

But, when the jury announced "guilty" of voluntary manslaughter, Gabrielle Crothers burst into tears, hung her head and put her hand over her eyes. David Crothers slumped back in his chair, closed his eyes and shook his head in a sigh.

Matthew Crothers remained stoic after the verdict was announced. He stared straight ahead, making no comment to reporters, when sheriff's deputies led him in handcuffs from the courtroom afterward.

Matthew Crothers said the stabbing occurred during a fight when David Crothers accidentally fell onto Matthew's folding knife, with which he was defending himself against David. Matthew said he feared for his own and his family's safety when using the knife not with the intent to kill David, but merely to get him to stop.

The prosecution said there's no evidence there was a fight. Alleging the aggressor was Matthew, not David, the prosecution said Matthew came up behind David and stabbed him three times in the right leg.

One of the knife wounds was to David Crothers' femoral artery, which caused immediate, rapid, heavy blood loss and unconsciousness. The lack of blood circulating oxygen to his brain and other vital organs sent him into a vegetative state from which he most likely would never return, which prompted his family's decision to have him removed from life support four days after the stabbing.

Matthew Crothers was charged with an "open count" of homicide.

An open count in this case consisted of three levels of homicide. The most serious level was first-degree murder, which involves a specific intent to kill, for which the penalty would have been life in prison without parole.

The next level below this was third-degree murder. This is a killing done with malice, when one knows their actions could cause another's death but doesn't care.

The least serious of the three levels was voluntary manslaughter, a heat-of-the-moment killing done by someone provoked into rage or with the unjustified belief that potentially lethal force is needed to defend him/herself or another. The jury in this case saw inconclusive evidence of intent or malice, but didn't view Matthew Crothers' actions as justifiable self-defense.

Story and Photo from the Pocono Record

See Jury hears taped confession in Chestnuthill fatal stabbing case for more info.