DA to seek death penalty against man charged in McKeesport officer's fatal shooting

The Allegheny County District Attorney’s office on Friday filed notice that it will seek the death penalty against Johnathan Morris, the man accused of killing McKeesport police Officer Sean Sluganski last month.

To seek capital punishment, the prosecution must lay allege at least one of several aggravating factors listed in Pennsylvania law. At trial, a jury must find that the prosecution proved at least one aggravator and determine that it outweighs any mitigating factors presented by the defense.

In its notice in the Morris case on Friday, the prosecution listed four aggravating factors: that Sluganski was a police officer killed in the line of duty; that he was killed during the perpetration of another felony; that Morris knowingly created a grave risk of death to another person; and that he has a history of felony convictions involving violence.

Morris, 31, does not have a criminal record, but the law allows for the felony conviction to occur simultaneous with the homicide conviction.

Morris will be formally arraigned in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court on Tuesday.

He was held for trial following a preliminary hearing on Feb. 17. He is charged with criminal homicide, attempted homicide, assault of a law enforcement officer, murder of a law enforcement officer, aggravated assault and carrying a firearm without a license.

Morris’ mother called 911 just after noon on Feb. 6 for a domestic dispute with her son at her house on Wilson Street, according to a criminal complaint.

Sluganski and Officer Chuck Thomas responded.

Allegheny County detectives said that when the officers arrived at the house, Morris was no longer there.

His mother pointed in the direction he had gone. At 12:21 p.m., according to the complaint, Sluganski radioed dispatchers telling them that Morris was walking on Sumac Street near Craig Street.

Four minutes later, Sluganski said Morris was running. He also reported that it appeared Morris had his “right hand in pocket, appears real heavy.”

Thomas then shouted on his radio that shots had been fired.

While Thomas returned fire, striking Morris in the leg, he was also hit and sustained an injury to his face.

Sluganski died a short time later.

A shift commander responding to the scene found Morris being helped by witnesses in the Unimart parking lot on Versailles Avenue, when Morris pulled out a gun and fired a round at him.

The commander fired back, and Morris was taken into custody.

He remained hospitalized until Feb. 9.

The Allegheny County District Attorney’s office currently has five other pending capital cases.

The oldest dates back to 2015 against Cesar Mazza, accused of killing Tina Banks, the mother of his child, and her grandmother, Valorie Crumpton on May 4, 2015. Mazza has been through at least six defense attorneys during the time his case has been pending. It is scheduled for jury selection on Oct. 23.

In 2022, the DA’s office announced its intentions to seek the death penalty in four cases, including:

• Isaac Smith, accused of killing Karli Short, 26, and their unborn child on Sept. 13, 2021

• Ronald Steave, accused of killing his ex-girlfriend, Nandi Fitzgerald, 28; her son, Denzel “Buddy” Nowlin Jr. ,12,; and Tatiana “Tay” Hill, 28, on Dec. 31, 2021
• Deangelo Zieglar, accused of the Jan. 19, 2022, killing of Rachel Dowden, 28, who had a Protection From Abuse order against him.
• Calvin Crew, accused of killing Uber driver Christi Spicuzza, 38, of Turtle Creek, on Feb. 10, 2022

Gov. Josh Shapiro last month announced his plans to continue the moratorium on Pennsylvania’s death penalty and said he will not issue any execution warrants during his term.

He asked the state legislature to ban the practice entirely, as has been done in 25 other states.

No one has been executed in Pennsylvania since 1999. Three people were executed under former Gov. Tom Ridge.

In making his announcement, Shapiro said that the state’s capital punishment system is “fallible, and the outcome is irreversible.”

Former Gov. Tom Wolf announced the moratorium on the death penalty in 2015.

There are currently 101 people on Pennsylvania’s death row.

Of those, seven were convicted in Allegheny County. They include: Leroy Fears; Gerald Watkins; Richard Baumhammers; Ronald Taylor; Kenneth Hairston; Patrick Stollar and Richard Poplawski.