The Adams County district attorney will seek the death penalty for a man charged with first-degree murder in the January shooting death of Deputy Heath Gumm.
Seventeenth Judicial District Attorney Dave Young on Monday filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty in the case, said Sue Lindsay, a DA’s office spokeswoman.
Aggravating factors, including the killing of a law enforcement officer, led prosecutors to the death penalty decision, Lindsay said. Young’s office also consulted with Gumm’s family prior to the filing.
“The ultimate decision was Young’s,” she said.
Derion Dearing, 23, has been charged with multiple counts of first-degree murder in the Jan. 24 shooting death of Gumm. The deputy was shot in the chest in the 8700 block of Dawson Street as deputies responded to a report of an assault.
