CHICORA — Details surrounding the fatal shooting of a West Sunbury man last month emerged in court during a preliminary hearing Tuesday morning, April 25.

Following the testimony of three witnesses, a charge of criminal homicide against Jessica L. Callahan, 19, of Hilliards, was moved forward to Butler County Common Pleas Court. Callahan is being held in Butler County Prison without bail.

She is charged in the March 20 shooting death of Tyler J. Whitlatch, 31.

Members of the Whitlatch and Callahan families crowded the courtroom to hear testimony from law enforcement officials who responded to an incident around 3:15 p.m. at North Washington Rodeo grounds.

According to court documents, a female caller named Jessica told dispatchers she had shot Whitlatch at a residence on Kohlmeyer Road, Venango Township, and was taking him to the rodeo grounds in Washington Township.

Michael Banachoski, a patrolman with the state police, was first on scene.

Banachoski testified that when he arrived, he noticed a sedan parked between the rodeo grounds and a cemetery on Route 38. A woman, later identified as Callahan, was seated near the vehicle.

“She was on the phone, I’m not sure who with,” he said. “When I moved to the other side of the vehicle, I observed a male lying on his back, not moving. He didn’t appear to be breathing at the time ... As I began rendering aid to the individual on the ground, (Callahan) identified him as (Whitlatch).”

Banachoski said he rendered aid until emergency services arrived, but a heartbeat was not detected.

Whitlatch’s cause of death was listed as a gunshot wound to the torso, according to an autopsy conducted by the county coroner’s office.

Callahan was taken into custody at the scene and transported to the state police Butler barracks. There, she was interviewed by Tuesday’s second witness, Max Deluca, a state police criminal investigator.

Deluca testified that he conducted two interviews with Callahan, and each painted a different picture of the events prior to the shooting.

Callahan told him that she and Whitlatch had been in a relationship since October 2022 and that they arrived at the home of one of Callahan’s relatives early Monday.

Around noon, Deluca testified, Callahan was in an upstairs bedroom talking on the phone with a friend.

“She testifies (Whitlatch) believed (Callahan) to be talking negatively about him with a friend. She said he entered the bedroom, grabbed her by the throat and threw her on the bed,” he said.

Deluca said the two separated, and Callahan went downstairs to the living room, where another altercation ensued.

When they separated, Callahan told police she grabbed a semi-automatic shotgun from behind the couch and went outside, with Whitlatch following.

Deluca said Callahan initially reported firing a warning shot while on the patio. Whitlatch then attempted to retrieve a cinder block, and Callahan then shot him in the back.

“The second time she gave an interview, she gave a second rendition of what happened,” Deluca said.

He testified that Callahan changed her statement when he asked about the location of the cinder blocks.

Jordan Eckman, a criminal investigator on scene at Kohlmeyer Road, testified he found no evidence of cinder blocks around the residence.

“We couldn’t find anything that even resembled a cinder block in that area,” he said.

During the second interview, Callahan reiterated the first two physical altercations and her exiting the house. However, her testimony to Deluca of what happened outside the house changed.

“She related that as (Whitlatch) walked toward Kohlmeyer Road, she fired a shot in the air. When he was at the road, she shot him in the back,” he said.

Deluca said a spent shell casing was found in the yard, 55 feet from the mailbox on Kohlmeyer Road where Whitlatch’s phone was found by investigators.

Callahan then told police she put the shotgun back in its place behind the couch before transporting Whitlatch to the hospital.

“She related (Whitlatch) was able to get into the car on his own accord,” Deluca said. “She related while they were driving, his head slumped over and hit the dashboard. Sometime after, she called 911.”

During cross-examination by defense attorney Jose Hernandez-Cuebas, Deluca said Callahan made several statements about regretting the incident.

“One of which was that she wished she would have just walked away,” he said.

Callahan told police that two incidents of domestic abuse between her and Whitlatch occurred prior to the shooting, one in Kennerdell and one in Center Township. She testified that Whitlatch removed himself in both instances.

District Judge Lewis Stoughton ruled to hold charges over for Common Pleas Court. Callahan’s formal arraignment is scheduled June 20.