HARRISBURG - A jury yesterday convicted a man of involuntary manslaughter in his girlfriend's fatal fall last year from the window of his 23rd-floor apartment.
Kevin P. Eckenrode, 26, was acquitted of the more serious crime of third-degree murder in the Feb. 25 death of Rachel Kozlusky, 23.
Eckenrode faces a prison term of 2 1/2 to five years, although a Dauphin County prosecutor said a sentence of three to 12 months is more likely under sentencing guidelines.
Eckenrode and his attorney, William Costopoulos, exchanged brief nods after the jury announced its verdict, and Costopoulos said he was "very pleased" with the result. The jury deliberated for more than 12 hours over two days.
"It's been hard on him, it's been hard on his mother and it's been hard on the family [of the victim]," Costopoulos said afterward.
Jennifer Storm, director of the Dauphin County victim and witness-assistance program, said Koz-lusky's family found the verdict acceptable.
" 'Not guilty' today would have been devastating," she said.
In closing arguments, Costopoulos cited evidence that Kozlusky had been extremely drunk, and he argued that she had taken too great a risk, leading to the fall.
The couple were alone at the time of the fall, and Eckenrode told police he helped Kozlusky sit on the apartment ledge, then dangled her by the wrists in horseplay before she slipped from his grasp. *