Jury selection begins in capital homicide case for Smith Township father accused of killing son
Trial for Joshua George scheduled to begin Oct. 6
Jury selection began this week in the capital homicide case against the Smith Township father accused of shaking his son nearly four years ago, causing fatal injuries to the boy.
The pool of about 250 prospective jurors arrived Monday morning at the Washington County Courthouse as the process began to whittle down to a 12-person jury with four alternates for the death penalty trial of Joshua Wayne George that is scheduled to begin Oct. 6.
George, 33, is accused of assaulting his 6-month-old son Oliver at their Francis Mine Road residence near Burgettstown on Dec. 30, 2021, before dropping the child off to be watched by his maternal grandparents. While there, Oliver became lethargic and was acting strangely before he vomited as his arms and legs began turning purple, according to investigators.
Oliver was taken to Weirton (W.Va.) Medical Center before he was flown by medical helicopter to UPMC Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh, where he died Jan. 3. An autopsy revealed Oliver suffered a skull fracture, hemorrhaging and bruises consistent with being shaken, according to testimony at George’s preliminary hearing in March 2022.
Stanley Booker and Melanie Womer, the defense attorneys for George, have since raised questions about the timeline of when Oliver began showing symptoms, along with when and where he may have suffered the fatal injuries.
Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh announced in May 2022 he planned to seek the death penalty against George, citing aggravating factors such as the victim was under the age of 12 and his death allegedly happened in the commission of another felony. The case has taken nearly four years to come to trial due to the amount of legal proceedings required with it being a capital homicide case.
Since then, the Atlantic Center for Capital Representation has filed a petition on George’s behalf asking the state Supreme Court to restrict Walsh’s ability to pursue the death penalty, claiming he has wielded it for political purposes or to leverage plea bargain or cooperation from defendants. That case is still pending before the Supreme Court and is unlikely to be decided before George’s trial begins early next month.
The prospective jurors made their first appearance at the courthouse Sept. 15 when they were sworn-in and filled out a written questionnaire before being sent home and told to return Monday for the jury selection process to begin. President Judge Valarie Costanzo, who is presiding over the trial, has set aside two weeks for jury selection, although it could wrap up much sooner than that ahead of the trial, with opening statements scheduled to begin Oct. 6.
George, who is facing felony charges of criminal homicide, child endangerment and three counts of aggravated assault, has been held without bond at the Washington County jail since his arrest on Feb. 25, 2022, more than seven weeks after Oliver’s death. If convicted of first-degree murder, the case would then proceed to the death penalty phase of sentencing in which the jury would determine whether George should face capital punishment.