WILKES-BARRE — With no challenges being disputed, it seems that the trial for Scott Andrew Oliver, the suspect accused of killing his girlfriend in Foster Township, is set to start in early May in Luzerne County.
Judge Joseph F. Sklarosky Jr. conducted a status conference Thursday during which Oliver’s lawyer, Frank T. McCabe II, and Assistant District Attorney James L. McMonagle confirmed their readiness for the trial.
McCabe mentioned that he planned to submit a motion to suppress statements that Oliver, 31, made to the Pennsylvania State Police at Hazleton but chose not to pursue this course of action.
Oliver’s trial is scheduled to commence on May 6 for the charge of criminal homicide.
McCabe and McMonagle stated that they tried to negotiate a plea deal but were unsuccessful.
According to state police, Oliver is accused of shooting Jessica Romano, 35, in their shared home at 1290 Woodhaven Dr. on January 3, 2023. Romano passed away at Lehigh Valley Hospital – Hazleton.
A postmortem examination by forensic pathologist Dr. Gary Ross revealed that Romano died from a gunshot wound. Her death was classified as a homicide by the Luzerne County Coroner’s Office.
Following the shooting, court records indicate that Oliver went to a neighbor’s house, and that neighbor went with him back to 1290 Woodhaven Dr.
Oliver fled his residence when the neighbor contacted 911.
Oliver was apprehended nearly 16 hours later in a nearby vacant house.
