A Baltimore man convicted of murdering his former Altoona girlfriend in 2004 is one step closer to facing the death penalty after Governor Tom Corbett signed his death warrant Thursday.
 
The move comes five months after Andre Staton lost his appeal to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court – that’s when a panel of judges upheld his 2006 jury conviction. Deputy District Attorney Wade Kagarise called the move a “critical step” in the overall process of holding Staton accountable for his actions.
 
The death warrant now triggers a new series of additional appeals under the Post Conviction Relief Act. The 48-year-old Staton brutal stabbed Beverly Yohn of Altoona after she sought a protection from abuse order against him. He remains on death row at the State Correctional Institution in Green.