Michael Woods is accused of killing two people and a service dog and injuring a third. Now, the district attorney is filing for the death penalty.
SCRANTON, Pa. — “It’s not just the right thing to do; it’s our responsibility to the victims in the community. We have to show them what accountability is, and we have to stand up when something so heinous happens in our community to ensure that it doesn’t happen again,” said Lackawanna County District Attorney Brian Gallagher.
Seeking the death penalty is what District Attorney Brian Gallagher and his team say is appropriate for accused murderer Michael Woods.
Back in December, Woods was accused of attacking residents at the Jermyn Apartments in Scranton.
Police say Woods, wielding a machete, killed Linda Fortuna and Terry Muller, as well as Muller’s golden retriever service dog. The attack also critically wounded another woman, Marilyn Waller.
There is currently a temporary suspension on death penalty cases in the commonwealth, making Gallagher’s efforts largely symbolic.
He says his office owes it to the victims to pursue the ultimate punishment for the crimes committed.
“There were four particular aggravated circumstances in this case that we filed with our notice,” said Gallagher. “The first was that two deaths occurred during this incident, right? There were two women that were killed. The second is that a death occurred during the commission of a felony. The third was that a third person was injured in addition to a crime that occurred when someone else was killed. And the fourth is that the deaths were by means of torture.”
The last time someone was put to death in Pennsylvania was in 1999. The last time a death sentence was handed down in Lackawanna County was in the mid-1980s, roughly 40 years ago.
In 1986, Steven Duffey was sentenced to death after being found guilty of killing a server at the former Genetti’s Manor restaurant in Dickson City.
Two years earlier, David Chmiel was sentenced to death after being convicted of stabbing and killing three people in Throop in 1983.
Both Chmiel and Duffey’s executions were later stayed.
Chmiel died in prison in 2024. Duffey remains on death row.
“It doesn’t happen here often, thank God, but when it does, the justice system has to respond appropriately, and that’s what we believe we’re doing,” said Gallagher.
Gallagher says Woods is due back in court Thursday for a formal arraignment. He remains held without bail at the Lackawanna County Prison.
Newswatch 16 did reach out to Woods’ defense for comment on the death penalty filing, but has not yet heard back.