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Teen's brother sought in hammer death
Adam Bishop of 307 Laurentz Lane, Bovard, died at 8:37 p.m. at UPMC Presbyterian, Pittsburgh's Oakland section, according to the Allegheny County Coroner's Office.
Trooper Tom Spallone, state police public information officer, said police had not yet decided last night whether to charge Ian Bishop, who fled on foot from his home shortly after the attack.
"So far as we can surmise, the 14-year-old struck his older brother at least twice with a hammer," Spallone said.
Spallone said the brothers got into a fight at about 4 p.m. in an upstairs bedroom of their home. The boys' parents were not at home at the time, and police did not know last night what prompted the attack.
Ian Bishop apparently panicked after the attack and phoned a friend, who came to the house with his mother, Spallone said.
It was the friend's mother who called the 911 dispatch center, which in turn notified state police.
Ian Bishop ran off after speaking with the friend and his mother. Police, accompanied by four of the Ian's friends, combed Westmoreland Mall around 8 p.m. and were sure they had caught sight of him.
A friend of Ian's, who spent at least some time with the 14-year-old after he ran, was being questioned by state police late last night. Police did not know that the friend had any involvement in the attack.
Both brothers were honors students at Hempfield Area Senior High School.
Andrea Altieri said she attended school with both brothers. She said Ian was in the freshman class with her while Adam was a senior who would have graduated this spring.
A neighbor, who declined to be identified, said Adam played piano and had a college music scholarship.
"From what I can tell, there didn't seem to be any rifts between them," Altieri said.
Altieri said she last saw the brothers together while they were all waiting for the school bus to pick them up yesterday morning. She did not notice any arguments or tension between the two. She last spoke to Ian yesterday afternoon in the honors American history class they take together.
"I'm shaken," Altieri said. "I'm friends with Adam, too. I don't see what they could have gotten into a fight over. They were always good kids."
State police helicopters flew circular search patterns over Bovard and nearby woods throughout the afternoon and into the night, as neighbors gathered in small groups along Laurentz Lane to watch investigators go through the brothers' home.
"We're kind of shocked," said neighbor Mike Shaffer. "This is a quiet neighborhood."
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