Tamaqua man gets life sentence in wife’s stabbing

Robert B. Bailey is “a coldblooded killer, who acted with malice, and intended to kill Diane Bailey,” Schuylkill County District Attorney Mike O’Pake said in his closing argument.

About two hours later, the jury agreed, finding Bailey guilty of first-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, simple assault, possession of instrument of crime and reckless endangerment of another person in the death of his wife, Diane Bailey, on the night of Nov. 26, 2017. The verdict was read by Deputy Clerk of Courts Angela Malusky.

“I’m very pleased – first degree is always a difficult charge to prove,” O’Pake said. “I thank the jury for coming up with the right verdict, and helping bring closure to the family.”

Bailey stabbed her 17 times, on the porch steps and sidewalk in front of a home they shared on Lafayette Street in Tamaqua.

A first-degree murder charge carries an automatic life sentence; Bailey has 30 days to appeal. He waived his right to a presentence investigation and was immediately sentenced by Judge John Domalakes, who presided over the trial.

Bailey was the only person to testify for the defense, represented by Public Defender Kent Watkins. On the stand, he described the approximately 20-year relationship the two had, which was filled with breakups, reconciliations and relocations from one state to another. In his testimony he accused Diane of drug use and cheating during that time period, but when asked by Watkins why they stayed together, he replied, “because I loved her.”

“I couldn’t resist Diane,” he said. “I forgave her, and we got back together.”

The couple eventually married in 2016.

“We were like newlyweds, after all these years I’d finally captured my unicorn,” Bailey testified. “All those years I never gave up that love, she was that creature I could never capture.”

In describing the stabbing, Bailey said that “for some ungodly known reason, all I wanted to do was hug Diane. I put my arms out to hold her and ending up pushing her.”

Bailey broke down on the stand, sobbing audibly. He clasped his hands together and put his head down on them. When he regained composure, he said that when he started attacking her, “it was like I was watching what would happen, something came over me.

“I had no reason to do that, never to hurt her, she was my friend, my love, my everything,” he said, wiping his eyes with a white cloth. “I remember stabbing her. I couldn’t stop, I couldn’t control myself.”

“I didn’t want this to happen — we always got back together,” he continued. “I’m still in shock about what I did — I look at my hands and I want to cut them off.”

On cross-examination, O’Pake pointed out that during his testimony, Bailey had expressed a great deal of remorse.

“When did you develop a conscience?” O’Pake asked. “If you wanted to hold or hug her, why didn’t you go to where she fell and help her up?”

Bailey replied that he didn’t know. O’Pake challenged his version of the attack, especially, the statements that he didn’t know what he was doing.

“If you didn’t know what you were doing, you would have been stabbing randomly,” O’Pake said. “But you told Chief (Henry) Woods on two occasions, ‘all I wanted to do was get to her neck.’ Remember that?”

“Yes,” Bailey replied.

In his closing argument, Watkins called the stab wounds “random” and pointed out Bailey’s interactions with police as “straightforward.” Bailey’s mindset during the attack on Diane Bailey “was almost like a blackout, that’s what he described,” Watkins said. If he’d planned to commit murder, Bailey would have waited inside the house, and not made an attack on the porch and sidewalk, in public view, Watkins said.

In his closing argument, O’Pake repeated Bailey’s actions, again referring to his confession to Woods where Bailey said “all I wanted to do is get to her throat.”

“She (Diane Bailey) said, ‘It’s over’ but Robert Bailey determined it wasn’t over and went for her throat again,” O’Pake said.

“He got what he wanted. There’s no reasonable doubt, and he did so with malice — how much more specific intent can there be?”