Opinion ID: 2344370
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Peter Regan.

Text: Summary: Regan left his girlfriend at a bar and went to her house to rob it. When a fifteen-year-old girl entered the home, Regan hit her five times with an aluminum baseball bat, killing her. When his girlfriend's twelve-year-old daughter entered the apartment, Regan hit her six times in the head and face with the bat, also killing her. Regan then removed the second victim's clothing so the incident would appear to be a rape. Regan had a prior record of assaults and a robbery, along with a history of drug and alcohol abuse. Regan pleaded guilty to two counts of purposeful, knowing murder and one count of robbery. He was sentenced to two concurrent life terms, with thirty years of parole ineligibility for the murder and a twenty-year term with a ten-year parole bar for the robbery. Comparison: Defendant concedes that Regan may be slightly less culpable than defendant, but suggests the difference is insufficient to justify Regan being allowed to plead guilty and avoid a penalty trial. In defendant's view, there was no evidence that Regan suffered abuse or had any mental impairment. Defendant also concedes that the victimization in Regan's case, though exacerbated by the undressing of one victim, was somewhat less than in his case, and that Regan may not have expected the house to be occupied. The State argues that the victimization in Regan's case was less than in defendant's case. The State further notes that Regan's moral blameworthiness is diminished because he did not know the victims would be there. Finally, the State argues that Regan had drug and alcohol problems, and was drinking on the night of the crime. The central differences between Regan and defendant are that defendant decided to commit his crime in a home he knew would be occupied by elderly victims, and that Regan's attack was not as prolonged as defendant's. In comparison, this reduces the victimization in Regan's case. As a result, Regan's case does not suggest that defendant's death sentence was disproportionate.