Editorial: Why are there so many death penalty cases in Washington County?

Washington County has about 210,000 residents.

It is 18th in population among Pennsylvania counties. It has a million fewer people than neighboring Allegheny County.

Of the 98 people sentenced to death in the Keystone State, 19 were convicted in Philadelphia, seven in Allegheny and five in Westmoreland.

But if a number of cases turn out the way District Attorney Jason Walsh wants, more people will be on death row from Washington County than anyplace but Philadelphia — more than seven times the size.

Pennsylvania courts have 54 cases awaiting trial in which prosecutors have filed a notice to seek the death penalty. Of those, 10 were filed by Walsh in the past 16 months. Two more were filed by his predecessor, Gene Vittone, who died in August 2021, leading to Walsh’s appointment.

The math seems a bit off-kilter. Pennsylvania is a state of 13 million people. Why would so many capital cases be centered in a mid-sized county with a largely suburban to rural population?

Homicide, however, is not a proportional kind of crime. It can be hard to predict. Some counties will go years without a single murder. Then, in a flash, it racks up grisly attacks that are the stuff of podcasts and “Law & Order” episodes.

But defense attorneys are concerned that politics is getting ahead of justice for Walsh, a Republican running to keep the seat against Democrat Christina Demarco-Breeden.

Walsh’s campaign Facebook account “Friends of Walsh” has shared media accounts of his death penalty cases, leading attorneys for one defendant to file a motion to disqualify him from prosecution. Walsh returned fire with a motion for a gag order barring lawyers Ken Haber and Ryan James from speaking about the case and asking for sanctions against the lawyers.

Are the death penalty notices improper? That’s hard to say. Haber and James are correct in saying that capital cases are supposed to be the most heinous crimes — like the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue shooting or the 2017 killing of New Kensington police Officer Brian Shaw.

It is up to every district attorney to decide whether he or she believes the case meets that threshold. It is not, however, up to Walsh or any prosecutor to decide if that punishment is meted out. That is up to the jury. Pennsylvania has a multistep process that separates guilt from sentence in death cases. A jury can say someone is guilty but still give a life sentence.

Then there is the fact Pennsylvania hasn’t executed anyone since 1999, when Gary Heidnik was given lethal injection. A death sentence in the state’s courts is more a de facto life imprisonment. Gov. Josh Shapiro has said he will not issue a death warrant and has said he wants the state Legislature to end capital punishment.

But that is no excuse for playing politics with such an important topic. If that’s what Walsh is doing, he should stop. If it isn’t, perhaps he should run the numbers and see if Washington County is really such a hotbed of monstrous crime.