Woman Charged With Harassment

Agnes Shipp 
January 13, 1997 
Agnes Shipp, Formerly Of Garfield Street, Honey Pot Section Of Nanticoke, Died 
Monday At The Nanticoke Villa, Where She Was A Resident For The Past Three 
Years.

By TERRIE MORGAN-BESECKER; Times Leader Staff Writer
 Thursday, January 16, 1997 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 7A 





WILKES-BARRE -- A White Haven man who ran down and killed his pregnant
girlfriend with his car last year will spend six months in jail for the crime. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Wiping tears from his eyes, Charles Forschner told Judge Michael Conahan he
loved the victim, Gwen Stempel, and was sorry for her death -- statements that
meant little to the woman's family and friends who attended Wednesday
morning's sentencing in the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; "At Christmas we had to go to the cemetery," Stempel's sister, Ann Baddick,
told Conahan, breaking down in tears. "You have a 4-year-old daughter with no
mother. All she wants is her mom and he took that away from her." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Forschner pleaded guilty in November to involuntary manslaughter and two
counts of drunken driving for the May 18 incident that led to Stempel's death. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Forschner claimed he accidentally ran down Stempel, 28, after she exited
his car following an argument outside his apartment. Stempel walked a short
distance, then turned and walked back toward the car. That's when Forschner
struck her. She died the next day. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Stempel had a young daughter and was two months pregnant -- something
Forschner did not know until the autopsy was done, said his attorney, Ferris
Webby. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Speaking in a nearly inaudible voice, Forschner told Conahan he loved
Stempel and had planned to marry her. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I loved her so much and I miss her so much," he said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But the woman's mother, Gayle Stempel, and other family members took little
solace in his comments. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "He got nothing, nothing," said Stempel as she hurried from the courtroom. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "God will get him in the end," said Jackie Rutter, Stempel's friend. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But Forschner's friends and family described him as a deeply distraught
person who will continue to suffer the rest of his life as he deals with his
guilt. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "He was just out of his mind with grief," said Forschner's mother, Naomi,
describing his reaction to Stempel's death. "I'm sorry for Gwen's death and he
is, too ... He's ready to pay. Whatever he's done, he knows he lost the girl
he loved." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Conahan sentenced Forschner to six to 24 months. The first six months will
be served at the Luzerne County Correctional Facility, where he will be
eligible for work release; the next six months will be spent in home
confinement. He will be paroled after that, Webby said, provided he doesn't
get into additional trouble. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Involuntary manslaughter carries a sentence of anywhere from probation to
five years in prison. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Forschner's sentence was in line with other recent cases of involuntary
manslaughter, including area dentist Joseph Mazula. Mazula recently pleaded
guilty in the death of a 3-year-old boy who died from an allergic reaction to
anesthesia Mazula administered. He was sentenced to five years probation. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Webby said he believes Conahan took several mitigating factors into
consideration in sentencing Forschner, including his involvement with several
youth sporting leagues in the White Haven area. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Defendant Sorry, But 6-month Sentence In Fatality Upsets Family