Murder Suspect Scheduled to Enter Plea Thursday

A Newark man facing charges in the death of the mother of his two sons is scheduled to enter a plea in his seventh court appearance on Thursday.

Jason Otis Monroe, 32, is scheduled to enter a plea and receive a trial date at 9 a.m. in the Fremont Hall of Justice.

Monroe . He faces one count of murder for the death of Evangeline Supena Contillo, according to a copy of the complaint document filed at the Fremont Hall of Justice.

Monroe was arrested at a home on the 36000 block of Cherry Street on April 27 when police of apparent stab wounds inside the home shortly after 11:13 a.m.

Police have never disclosed the relationship between Monroe and Contillo but family members and neighbors have said the two were a couple and the parents of two young children.

In his recent court hearings, Monroe has been quiet, only speaking directly to Judge Dennis McLaughlin and whispering brief statements to his attorney, Deputy Public Defender Marvin Lew.

But Monroe previously requested to represent himself in his first court appearances on April 29 and May 5, when Deputy Public Defender Kristen McCannon was assigned as his attorney.

At that time, he also asked to speak with Deputy District Attorney Andrew Ross about taking a polygraph test and the whereabouts of his children.

“And it’s not about me. For all I care, I can get the death penalty. It’s about the kids. And I really want a polygraph,” Monroe said, according to a transcription of his May 4 appearance.

Monroe on May 6 and Lew appeared with Monroe as his new attorney on June 23.

At the time of the April 27 homicide, Contillo had a restraining order in effect against Monroe, stemming from a Feb. 25 domestic battery case.

Monroe was previously arrested and convicted on Feb. 28 on charges of misdemeanor battery, assault and corporal injury to a spouse or cohabitant.

Contillo was the victim of the assault and corporal injury charges, according to the district attorney’s office. The office would not release the identity of the battery victim.

Monroe is being held without bail at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin.

Editor's note: This report was updated to correct the amount of times Monroe has been in court.