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<b>First Posted:</b> 7/11/2007<br><br>WILKES-BARRE &amp;ndash; Every day, Samantha Banellis sees the scar that runs down her chest and stomach. She got it after being shot once in the back by Charles Harris last year.
The scar, she said, reminds her daily of how close she came to death.
On Tuesday, she told a Luzerne County judge she wanted Harris, too, to think each day about how close he came to killing her.
The judge gave Harris plenty of time to do his thinking.
Court of Common Pleas Judge Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. sentenced Harris, 24, to 13 &amp;#65533; to 27 years in state prison followed by 10 years of probation for trying to kill Banellis.
And the sentence came with a special request for parole officials.
&amp;ldquo;His intent was nothing less than to kill this young lady,&amp;rdquo; Olszewski said. &amp;ldquo;In no uncertain terms, this defendant should spend every single day of the maximum sentence in a state correctional institution.&amp;rdquo;
A jury in May convicted Harris of attempted homicide, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and a firearms offense in the case.
The verdict came after a day of testimony.
Banellis, 22, told the jury she picked up Harris, whom she only knew as &amp;ldquo;Ty,&amp;rdquo; in Pittston July 30 to give him a ride to Wilkes-Barre. Harris put a pistol on his lap and refused to leave Banellis&amp;rsquo; vehicle, she said. She went back toward Pittston and stopped at her father&amp;rsquo;s Jenkins Township home for help.
Harris grabbed Banellis as she tried leaving the car. Banellis broke free, heard the gunshot, and felt pain in her back. The bullet cut through her liver and narrowly missed a large vein before exiting her abdomen.
Harris testified that he didn&amp;rsquo;t shoot Banellis. He said he wasn&amp;rsquo;t even in her car that night. His attorney, Mark Bufalino, argued assistant district attorneys Mike Vough and Tim Doherty had insufficient evidence to show Harris was the triggerman.
Harris on Tuesday maintained his innocence, but apologized to Banellis and her family for what she has gone through. He vowed to keep fighting the case.
&amp;ldquo;I am not guilty of these said crimes,&amp;rdquo; said Harris, who asked the judge to keep the sentence low and not view him as the &amp;ldquo;monster&amp;rdquo; he was portrayed to be.
The words didn&amp;rsquo;t seem to faze Olszewski.
He imposed the hefty sentence because he saw no remorse or acceptance of responsibility from Harris, and because he believed Harris&amp;rsquo; actions were &amp;ldquo;willful, deliberate and premeditated.&amp;rdquo;
Vough said he and Doherty were satisfied with the sentence, noting it will keep Harris under supervision for most of his life. Bufalino said he planned on reviewing the case with Harris to see if any appeals are warranted.
Olszewski initially sentenced Harris to 23 &amp;#65533; to 47 years in prison. Banellis had said she was satisfied with that sentence, saying Harris &amp;ldquo;got what he deserved.&amp;rdquo; But Olszewski later changed the sentence after realizing he misinterpreted a background report that called for the lower sentence. 
Banellis could not be reached for comment on the lower sentence.
The same day of the Banellis shooting, Harris&amp;rsquo; then girlfriend, Patricia Stark, used the same gun that was used in the Banellis shooting to kill Cari Chapman, police said. Stark has pleaded guilty and is serving life in prison. Prosecutors have not publicly stated whether the shootings were directly connected.

    

David Weiss, a Times Leader staff writer, may be reached at 831-7397.

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