Guilty Plea Entered In 2012 Yarmouth Baseball Bat Beating

BARNSTABLE – The Yarmouth man who beat his neighbor to death with a baseball bat in 2012 pleaded guilty to second degree murder charges Thursday in Barnstable Superior Court.

John Looney, 54, will spend the rest of his life in prison after attacking Richard Steele with a bat following an argument at a Kings Way condo complex in March of 2012. Steele was critically injured in the attack and died of head trauma 8 months later.

Looney was arrested that night at the Cape Cod Hospital emergency room, where he was seeking treatment for an arm injury.

Looney was found competent to stand trial. The Cape and Islands District Attorney’s office says Looney had a 30 year history of paranoid schizophrenia and mental health issues and had stopped seeking treatment and taking his medication prior to the incident.

Judge Gary Nickerson handed down the mandatory life sentence, and a concurrent sentence of 2 to 3 years for Assault and Battery with a Dangerous Weapon.