Man convicted in killing over New Jersey Devils hat comment

PHILADELPHIA – A man has been convicted of stabbing another man to death near a popular Philadelphia park because of a comment about the killer’s New Jersey Devils hat.

Philly.com reports Wednesday that 42-year-old Steven Simminger has been convicted of first-degree murder for the 2016 killing of 24-year-old Colin McGovern in Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square.

One of McGovern’s friends testified that he said something like “screw the Devils” before Simminger stabbed McGovern 10 times. Philadelphia is across the Delaware River from New Jersey and has its own National Hockey League team, the Flyers.

Simminger’s attorney contends her client killed the Pennsylvania man out of fear for his own life. But prosecutors called Simminger a “ticking time bomb” who was under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

Sentencing is scheduled for January.

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Information from: The Philadelphia Inquirer, http://www.inquirer.com