David D. Barkus, a 30-year-old male, died on August 15, 2002, in Morea, Pennsylvania, in a mass shooting that began inside the home of Raienhna Bechtel in Mahanoy Township. Barkus, who was from Delano, was one of two friends visiting Raienhna that night, along with Kristen L. Tragus. What appeared to have been an ordinary late-night gathering at a kitchen table turned into a scene of domestic violence that left four people dead.
Authorities said Michael H.
Bechtel, Raienhna's 26-year-old estranged husband, entered the home despite a protection-from-abuse order that barred him from contacting her. Raienhna had obtained the order months earlier, and a judge had evicted Michael from the home, prohibited him from possessing firearms, and awarded Raienhna custody of their 3-year-old son, Jacob. Despite those restrictions, Michael arrived armed with a 9 mm semiautomatic pistol.
Police said Michael shot Raienhna, Jacob, David Barkus, and Kristen Tragus in the head. Barkus and Tragus were found dead at the kitchen table, while Raienhna was found on the floor nearby. Jacob was found shot to death in a bed upstairs. Michael Bechtel was found alive nearby after shooting himself in the head. He was seriously wounded, survived the injury, and was later left using a wheelchair.
Investigators identified Michael Bechtel as the only suspect. At a preliminary hearing, police testified that Bechtel had described himself as a habitual methamphetamine user and said he always carried a gun. He reportedly told police that methamphetamine made him aggressive. Police also testified that a 9 mm Beretta had been seized during a March domestic dispute at the home but was later returned to Bechtel because, under the law cited at the hearing, officers could not keep a firearm that had not been used in the domestic incident tied to the protection order.
Bechtel was charged with homicide, aggravated assault, possession of instruments of crime, and burglary. Prosecutors initially prepared to seek the death penalty, citing aggravating factors that included multiple killings, the death of a child under 12, and the fact that Bechtel was under a protection-from-abuse order at the time. In January 2004, he pleaded guilty to the four murders. After discussions with the victims' families, prosecutors accepted a sentence of four consecutive life terms rather than proceeding to a death penalty trial.
In court, the families confronted the lasting damage of the killings. Barkus' sister spoke about his young daughter crying for her father and only being able to see him through photographs or at the cemetery. His mother, Lorraine, said the family had been shattered by his death. Bechtel apologized in court, but the plea ensured that he would spend the rest of his life in prison for killing David Barkus, Raienhna Bechtel, Jacob Bechtel, and Kristen Tragus.
