LANCASTER, Pa. — A Lancaster man currently serving life in prison for the 2015 murder of a 21-year-old man in a city parking lot had his bid for a new trial denied in appellate court, the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office said.
Victor M. TIrado was convicted of first-degree murder in 2018 for shooting Rahdir Maxton in the back of the head in a parking lot on the 200 block of East Fulton Street, the DA's office said.
Tirado argued in his request for relief that his attorney was ineffective and failed to ask the trial judge to provide jurors with an instruction about two witnesses Tirado claimed were accomplices.
That request was denied this week by the Pennsylvania Superior Court, which found that a “corrupt-source instruction” was not necessary, according to the DA's office.
The two witnesses were in a vehicle with Tirado before and after the shooting. Both testified about what they saw and heard Tirado say.
Tirado, now 55, argued those two men were the only witnesses who placed him at the murder scene – a claim that the appellate court rejected.
The state Superior Court pointed to other evidence and testimony that placed Tirado at the scene, including:
- Surveillance video recordings that depicted Tirado’s “distinct gait”
- Maxton’s fiancée’s testimony that Maxton went to meet Tirado
- Cellphone records that confirmed that arranged meeting
First Deputy District Attorney Travis S. Anderson, who won the trial conviction, called Tirado a “cold-blooded killer” at sentencing.
Lancaster County Judge Donald Totaro ordered the life sentence and previously denied Tirado’s request for relief.
Assistant District Attorney Mari Andracchio represented the Commonwealth in the recent post-conviction matter.
