BABBITT- St. Louis County District Judge Michelle Anderson sentenced Josiah David Delvecchio, of Duluth, to 204 months in state prison for his involvement in a conspiracy to murder the owner of a clothing business here in 2021. The 27-year-old Delvecchio, sentenced June 18, was the second of the three defendants in the case to be sentenced.
Delvecchio was charged along with Donald James Miller, age 35, and Dylan Thomas Peterson, age 32, in the stabbing attack on the owner of a Babbitt clothing business on July 10, 2021.
Delvecchio was convicted in a jury trial this past January of conspiracy to commit first degree murder. Under the sentence, Anderson is requiring that Delvecchio serve a minimum term of 136 months and 68 months of supervised release.
After his conviction, Delvecchio petitioned the court for a lighter sentence, arguing he had lesser involvement with the stabbing than the other two defendants, and that he had turned his life around since the incident. He requested 120 months followed by supervised release, which is less than Minnesota’s sentencing guideline of 20 years.
According to court records, Miller and Peterson allegedly planned the murder, and Peterson recruited Delvecchio to help. Peterson allegedly performed the attack in Babbitt and Delvecchio aided with the get-away. Miller was convicted on March 10, 2023, and sentenced to 20 years by District Judge Robert C. Friday. He may become eligible for supervised release after two-thirds of his sentence has been served. Miller appealed his conviction, and the appellate court denied the appeal earlier this month. The Babbitt Police Department received a letter of commendation from the St. Louis County Attorney’s Office for its work on the case.
Peterson, the third defendant, is scheduled for a jury trial starting Nov. 12, 2024.
Troy Bissonette, the Babbitt Police Chief, issued a statement last week thanking the St. Louis Sheriff’s Office, the Ely Police Department, the East Range Police Department, the Gilbert Police Department, and the Eveleth Police Department for their assistance in response to the incident and the subsequent investigation. He also thanked the St. Louis County Attorney’s Office for their prosecution of the case.