Montco man pleads guilty to murder by ‘snoring’

EASTERN MONTGOMERY COUNTY, PA — A Montgomery County man has pleaded guilty to killing his neighbor because the neighbor complained about his snoring, authorities said.

Christopher Casey, 56, who lives in the Hatboro section of Upper Moreland Township, has been charged by the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office with third-degree premeditated murder and manslaughter, as well as possession of an instrument in connection with the stabbing death of Robert Wallace.

Casey was sentenced in Montgomery County District Court in Norristown to 11.5 to 23 months in prison, followed by three years of probation, after pleading guilty to manslaughter and possession of a murder weapon, court records show.

The stabbing occurred at Casey's home in the 300 block of Fitch Road in the Hatboro section of Upper Moreland Township.

The two were known to the police due to “ongoing disputes,” the public prosecutor’s office said at the time of the crime.

The bedrooms of the two houses share a wall and Wallace, who lived with his elderly mother, had complained about Casey's nightly snoring, according to court documents.

Casey's attorney, James Lyons, claims his client was diagnosed with developmental disabilities, including autism spectrum disorder, and that Casey was genuinely afraid of Wallace.

Casey called 911 at 6:34 p.m. Sunday and said he stabbed Wallace after he broke his window. He said, “I attacked my neighbor. He came to attack me,” court documents say.

Upper Moreland Township police officers found Wallace with stab wounds to the chest about 50 feet from the home near the intersection of Winner and Fitch roads, officials said. Emergency responders took him to Abington Hospital for emergency surgery, where a doctor pronounced him dead.

Officers also found “a large military-style knife” and a cell phone on Casey's porch. They also noticed that a screen had been removed and was lying on the grass, while the window next to the front door was open.

Officers questioned Casey at the hospital Sunday night, where he told police that his snoring had been a point of contention with Wallace for about a year and a half.

According to court documents, Casey testified that he was eating dinner the night of the stabbing when Wallace knocked on his front window and yelled, “I'm going to kill you.”

According to Casey's testimony, Wallace ripped off the screen and then opened the unlocked window. The two talked through the window for about 20 minutes, and Wallace had “calmed down a little.”

Wallace did not attempt to enter the house, but he “leaned over” to shake Casey's hand and offered to help Casey financially “to cover the cost of a nose job to eliminate snoring.”
According to court documents, Casey said he unlocked his front door but took a large knife and a taser that were on his recliner.

“Casey stated he also grabbed a blue-colored blanket and used it to cover the knife and taser in an attempt to hide the weapons from Wallace's view,” police wrote in a probable cause affidavit.

“Casey further stated that he hid the weapons from Wallace's view because Casey wanted to 'surprise' him (Wallace).”

At the front door, Casey said he greeted Wallace and then stabbed him in the chest while Wallace stood on the doorstep. He admitted to stabbing Wallace three or four times and then accidentally stabbing himself.

Casey further told police he did not believe Wallace was “trying to work things out,” and described him as “angry” and “uncontrollable.” He acknowledged that Wallace did not directly threaten him or display threatening behavior, and said he hid the knife because he wanted to “surprise” him, court records state.