Man breaks into home and shoots pregnant woman to death, PA officials say. ‘Evil’
A man attempting to burglarize a home encountered a pregnant woman, then killed her, Pennsylvania prosecutors said.
Now, a judge handed down two life sentences to Shawn Cranston of Corry, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s office said in a July 28 news release.
The 53-year-old was convicted of first- and second-degree murder, among other charges, in the 2024 killing of 23-year-old Rebekah Byler and her unborn child, according to prosecutors.
His attorney information was not listed.
Cranston slit Byler’s throat, then shot her to death when he broke into her Sparta Township home on Feb. 26, 2024, according to prosecutors.
Her two other children were in the home when the mother was killed, loved ones wrote in a GoFundMe.
Attorney General David Sunday called the killing a “truly evil act.”
“My thoughts are with the victim’s family, whose quiet strength throughout the process has been inspiring,” Sunday said in a statement.
Sparta Township is about a 120-mile drive northeast from Pittsburgh.
This story was originally published July 30, 2025 at 2:00 PM with the headline "Man breaks into home and shoots pregnant woman to death, PA officials say. ‘Evil’."
