Burnell gets life
Max sentence after lengthy investigation



ALBANY — After a lengthy murder investigation, a mistrial, and much debate over controversial fingerprint evidence, Hashim Burnell is going to jail for the rest of his life.

Burnell, 21, got the maximum sentence of life in prison without parole for shooting Todd Pianowski to death in his Guilderland apartment. And he was sentenced to another 25 years for robbing Pianowski’s girlfriend, Lauren Parker, at gunpoint.

Burnell’s original trial was declared a mistrial after fingerprint evidence was entered four days into the trail and well over a year after the prints were taken from the murder scene.

The sentence was handed down by Albany County Judge Stephen W. Herrick yesterday after nearly two years of investigation and trials.

Burnell was convicted last month of shooting Pianowski through the heart and then in the back of the head as Pianowski struggled to push himself up off of the floor at his 1700 Designer Apartments home off of Western Avenue.

He is convicted of one count of first-degree murder and three counts of first-degree robbery.

Prosecutors at his trial painted Burnell as a drug-dealing felon who was in desperate need of cash and saw Pianoswki as an easy target. The defense maintained Burnell’s innocence and said police had the wrong man.

Burnell and Pianowski knew each other through Guilderland High School and from small-time drug deals, trial testimony showed.

Guilderland Police and State Police handled the investigation, arresting Burnell on May 5, 2005, the same day as the murder. Guilderland Police Chief James Murley said yesterday that his department had handled a dozen or so murder cases since its inception in 1971.
The assistant district attorney for Albany County who handled the case, Bruce Lennard, told reporters yesterday that this was a "senseless killing," and that Burnell "decided to cash in on Todd Pianowski’s life," even though family and friends could have given him money.

Victims speak

Victims gave emotional statements at the somber Albany County courtroom prior to the sentencing, giving closure to one family while the other maintained their son’s innocence, saying there is no definitive evidence.
"My son was gruesomely murdered"Not a day goes by that I am not reminded of it," said Ron Pianowski, the dead man’s father. "What do I do with the objects and pictures that I’ve saved from the past""
Pianowski described his son to the court as a "kind and gentle man," who devoutly loved his girlfriend, Parker, and had a long and ambitious future ahead of him.
"Todd’s death will surely save other lives and their family and friends the grief and sorrow me and my friends have endured and will continue to endure for the rest of our lives," said Pianowski, as he thanked the court for taking "a murderer off the streets. His wife, Pam, also thanked the court.
"Todd, God be with you," said Ron Pianowski.

A teary-eyed, yet stoic Lauren Parker, Pianowski’s girlfriend, followed with her statement to the court.
"May 5, 2005 should have been a good day for Todd and I"but, in actuality, it turned out to be the worst day of my life," said Parker. "I had to come face to face with a monster"Even when I see someone who looks like you, I cringe," she told Burnell. "I can’t be the first one to walk into a room anymore."

Continuing, as more tears came, Parker looked at Burnell, who stood silently in his orange jumpsuit, his face expressionless and his hands manacled.
"Todd was loving and giving"When Todd put his mind to something, he always got it done," Parker said. "Todd should have been my husband and the father to my children, and I hate you for that."
Parker described how, on May 5, she walked into the apartment she shared with Pianowski, and Burnell was there, standing over her boyfriend’s prone body; then he turned his gun on her, saying, "If you move too fast or if you scream, I’ll kill you." She says she was then taken by gunpoint down the hall and down an elevator before Burnell ran out another door and drove away.
"You took away my boyfriend, my soul mate, and my best friend," Parker said in her statement. "I hope when you’re in prison, it haunts you every day, knowing you’re a monster.
"I don’t know why you thought you would get away with it"All I can picture is Todd laying there dead on the floor," Parker told Burnell. "I just wish I could see Todd, I wish I could touch him"I hope you suffer alone and die alone."

The sentence

Judge Herrick showed no leniency and gave Burnell, according to district attorney’s office, one of the stiffest penalties in Albany County’s history.
Assistant District Attorney Lennard asked Judge Herrick for " nothing less than life without the possibility of parole," plus an additional 25 years for the armed robbery.
"He did not have to do this thing," Lennard told Herrick before the sentencing, describing the "ruthlessness, viciousness, and senselessness" of the murder. Lennard maintained that, although Burnell owed money to several individuals, including his landlord the day of the murder, he had other avenues besides murdering Pianowski.

Burnell’s court-appointed lawyer, Paul Edwards, pleaded with the court for leniency based on Burnell’s youth.
"This man that stands before you is 21; he was 19 when the murder occurred," Edwards told Judge Herrick. "Based on his youth, the court has a wide range of options"I would ask the court for a possibility of parole."

Edwards gave statistics to the court prior to the sentencing which cited a dramatic drop in convicted felons recommitting crimes as they get older in life. Judge Herrick acknowledged receiving those documents.

Burnell addressed the court briefly before he was sentenced.
When asked if he had a statement, Burnell appeared to be almost speechless at first, saying, "Umm," before coming out and saying that he felt sorry for the Pianowski family, and that he "couldn’t stop what happened to their son."
He maintained his innocence to Judge Herrick saying, "I didn’t do it," and, referring to the two families in the courtroom, he said, "God bless them, and God bless my family."

Herrick was not swayed.
"Mr. Burnell, I did give this sentencing today a great deal of thought. I have struggled with this decision," the judge told Burnell. "I don’t believe what you just said."

Continuing, Herrick told Burnell that he went to that apartment on May 5 and that he went inside with a handgun with the intention of robbing it.
"You killed him coldly in order to eliminate the possibility to identify you," Herrick said of Pianowski’s death, calling it a vicious murder.
"I don’t know why you spared her life"," Herrick said of Parker’s walking into the murder scene. "You let her go, thank God you did."

Herrick reminded Burnell that he was on parole when he committed this violent felony, and that he was given multiple opportunities to take responsibility for his actions.

Guilderland Police said yesterday that Burnell was on parole for three counts of residential burglary in the Guilderland area when Pianowski was killed.

One of the neighbors that Burnell robbed on Benjamin Street, Mary Bailey, told The Enterprise that Burnell has a "quite a history" of stealing in the area, including cars and money.
The Bailey’s said despite Burnell’s stealing, he had a very "charming personality."
"You were convicted of murder in the first degree"and three counts of robbery. Mr. Edwards said you should receive a sentence with a possibility for parole," Judge Herrick told Burnell. "I don’t want you to be eligible to be released even if it’s only a 25-percent chance to commit again.
"I believe that you are totally without remorse and a threat to society, and should never be released back into society again," Herrick concluded before sentencing Burnell to life in prison without parole.
As Herrick read Burnell’s sentence, a definitive, "Yes!" was heard on the Pianowskis side of the courtroom, while many members sitting on the Burnell side simply dropped their heads in disbelief.

Burnell was also sentenced to pay the court restitution in the sum of $270 and $50 for a DNA database fee. Herrick said orders of protection would be issued if deemed necessary as well.
"I now release you to the custody of the Albany County Sheriff’s," Herrick told Burnell as he was taken away.

The reaction

A young boy ran out of the courtroom, crying after the sentence was given.
"Don’t cry, Elijah," Laverne Burnell, Hashim’s mother, called to the boy after he left.
As Burnell walked past his family in shackles and an orange jumpsuit, Laverne Burnell also called out to her son, "I love you, son. I love you, and I believe in you."

Once outside of the courtroom, Burnell’s mother and grandmother, Annie Burnell, defiantly told reporters that Burnell was completely innocent and they plan on appealing the verdict.
"It could’ve been anyone that did that," Laverne Burnell said hysterically, through tears. "There was a large quantity of drugs found in that apartment"Everyone was involved in some kind of drugs."

Annie Burnell agreed.
"Why wasn’t she arrested"" Annie Burnell asked of Parker’s involvement with drug-dealing in her apartment. "Todd Pianowski was not a murderer and neither is Hashim Burnell."

The two women tearfully appealed to reporters and news cameramen, saying there was no hard evidence linking Burnell to the murder.
"The cops are buying children and paying them to rat on each other," Laverne Burnell said, instead of taking the drugs off the streets, she contended. "Do you know how they identified my son" With a sneaker, not a face."
The shoe, which had "floppy straps" instead of laces, was a key piece of evidence gathered from the surveillance videos at both a local bank and the apartment complex the day of the murder.

Lennard told jurors during the trial that, even though a clear face could not be made out on the video tape, Burnell’s sneakers were clearly identified in both the bank and at the murder scene on May 5, 2005.

The defense contended that many young men wear their sneakers unstrapped.

Both Burnell’s mother and grandmother say, even though it will cost a lot of money, they will move forward with an appeal.
The district attorney’s office is hailing the sentence as a victory and said Lennard did "an exceptional job prosecuting this case on behalf of the people of Albany County." The office also said that it hopes the sentence will deter youth in future from engaging in violent acts.

The Pianowski and Parker families did not wish to speak with the media following the sentencing, but Lennard spoke with reporters on their behalf.
"This case is, of course, a tragedy for both families," Lennard said. "It was a senseless killing"He effectively executed Todd Pianowski for a robbery that was not even necessary," he said of Burnell.

Lennard said that circles of friends that sell only marijuana may be nice people, but, those circles can overlap into other circles with some not-so-nice people.
"The worst thing that could have possibly happened, did," said Lennard of the murder. "He went there with a .40 caliber and he shot that boy in the heart and in the head"It’s a tragedy on any number of levels."
Lennard called Burnell’s sentence "entirely appropriate."

Guilderland Police also say justice has been served.
"I think the jury’s verdict speaks volumes to the investigation done by this department," Police Chief Murley told The Enterprise yesterday. "We’ve concentrated on the quality of the investigation."
Murley described the murder as a "tragedy all the way around" but stated, that the "jury has spoken.
"Two young people’s lives are gone," he added. "One man is dead and the other is serving for life."