A continuing exodus of prosecutors from the Allegheny County District Attorney’s office could lead to a delay in the death penalty trial for a man accused of killing a McKeesport police officer three years ago.

Jury selection in the case against Johnathan Morris was slated to begin on April 27 with testimony to follow on May 4 before Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Bruce Beemer.

During a Monday status conference on the case, however, Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Berosh said she was leaving the prosecutor’s office at the end of this week.

Berosh’s departure marks the fourth prosecutor on the Morris case to leave the office.

Morris, 34, is charged with killing Officer Sean Sluganski and wounding Officer Chuck Thomas on Feb. 6, 2023, after police were called to a domestic dispute at Morris’ mother’s house that afternoon.

There has not been a formal notice as to who will take Berosh’s place, although whoever it is will join Assistant District Attorney Matthew Newman, who joined the prosecution about a month ago.

District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. did not respond to a request for comment on the turnover.

During Monday’s proceedings, Beemer asked how Berosh’s departure might impact the case, and the parties then spoke at sidebar out of the hearing of the gallery.

Beemer has not yet formally issued an order postponing the case, but because of the complexity of a death penalty prosecution, it is almost certain to be delayed.

In addition to the change in prosecutors, just prior to Berosh’s announcement, Morris’ defense attorneys had asked the court for more time to have their own expert reports ready for trial.

A ‘PTSD episode’

Morris served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 2013 to 2018 and was deployed to Afghanistan. It was during that time that he developed symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Morris was treated for PTSD while in the service and in 2018 received an honorable discharge.

His mother, a former McKeesport police officer, told dispatchers that her son was being aggressive toward her and having a “PTSD episode,” investigators said.

When Sluganski arrived at the home, Morris was no longer there. Minutes later, Sluganski spotted him, and a short time after that reported that Morris was running.

Thomas, who was driving a patrol car at the time and responded as well, was shot in the face and wounded. He returned fire, striking Morris in the leg.

Sluganski was shot and died a short time later at the hospital.

Morris was arrested in a nearby parking lot and charged with criminal homicide, assault of a law enforcement officer and aggravated assault. After he was released from the hospital following treatment for his gunshot wound, Morris was held at Torrance State Hospital for a mental health evaluation.

Defense strategy

In September 2024, Morris’ attorneys filed notice that he would pursue an insanity defense, noting their client was previously diagnosed with schizophrenia and chronic post-traumatic stress disorder with paranoia and hypervigilance.

Defense attorney Carmen Robinson said in court Monday they would be pursuing a claim of self-defense, as well.

In court filings, the defense has said Thomas struck Morris with his patrol car that day, causing Morris, who had been either walking or running away, to ride on the hood of the car.

“On the day of the incident, Officer Thomas said in a recorded interview … that Officer Sluganski and he were ‘playing Frogger’ with Mr. Morris, and this was done despite having made statements in real time of the pursuit, ‘Ya, I’m with him (Mr. Morris), clearly out his mind.”

Additionally, the defense has requested Thomas’ personnel and disciplinary files from the McKeesport Police Department, alleging he had previously been investigated by the district attorney’s office for excessive force.

“The files requested would disclose Officer Thomas’ training, challenge the credibility of a key witness and support that Mr. Morris had reason to fear for his life and that his fear was reasonable given Officer Thomas’ actions and Mr. Morris’ condition,” the defense wrote.

Morris’ defense attorneys have also questioned whether Morris is the one who fired the shots that killed Sluganski, alleging the number of shots investigators have said their client fired — six — are fewer than were found at the crime scene.

“I’m going to assert these shots don’t add up,” Robinson said Monday at the status conference.

“That’s what we have trials for,” Beemer responded.

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