The state's highest court has refused to allow a convicted Carbon County murderer to appeal a decision by the state's Superior Court, which denied his appeal of his trial and sentence.

In a one-line order the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania denied the petition of Ernest Troy Freeby of Lansford to appeal the decision of the Superior Court.In December 2013, the Superior Court upheld the conviction and sentence of life without parole imposed on Freeby.The state court ruled that Freeby received a fair trial and the life without parole sentence imposed by President Judge Roger N. Nanovic II was appropriate.Freeby was convicted by a jury on Jan. 30, 2012, of first-degree murder in the death of his wife, Edwina Aiteno Onyango, 34, a native of Kenya.The trial began with jury selection on Jan. 9, with testimony beginning on Jan. 10, and concluding with the verdict. It was one of the longest criminal trials in the county in recent history.The case was unique in that Onyango's body has never been found.Freeby did not testify at the trial.The county's public defenders' office represented Freeby through attorneys Paul Levy and George Dydynsky.The defense filed its initial appeal with trial judge Nanovic, who denied the appeal of the verdict and sentence.Freeby then filed an appeal with the Superior Court, which denied that appeal in December.Now the Supreme Court has refused to allow a petition of allowance filed by Freeby to that court to review the decision of the Superior Court.The decision means that Freeby's direct appeal rights to the state higher courts is over.However, Freeby will be able to continue appeals using the state's post conviction hearing act in which he can raise other issues in trying to overturn his conviction.District Attorney Gary F. Dobias successfully prosecuted the case, one of several high-profile cases in which he won convictions.After the verdict was announced Dobias praised the tireless efforts of the state police in investigating the case.Dobias, calling the crime one of the worst types to come before a prosecutor, said that Freeby never expressed any concern about the whereabouts of his wife.Dobias said Freeby did not cooperate at all with state police in the investigation of her disappearance.He added at the sentencing proceeding that Freeby, "taunted investigators, tampered with evidence, misled police and lied to them."When first arrested, Freeby spoke freely with the media claiming he had seen his wife in Lansford several weeks before his arrest.