PORTLAND – The state supreme court on Wednesday heard the appeal of the sentence for a former Pittston man who was found guilty of manslaughter in the shooting deaths of his mother and estranged wife in 2004.

The courtroom was nearly full as the justices heard arguments in the case of Jon Dilley, who was convicted by a jury and sentenced last year to two consecutive 30-year terms, the maximum allowed.

Dilley was charged in the deaths of his mother, Sarah Murray, who was 71, and his wife, Chevelle “Chellie” Calloway, who was 41.

In his appeal, Dilley’s attorney Steven Peterson argued that the court should not have admitted a co-worker’s testimony about a conversation he had had with Dilley two years before the crimes.

Peterson also said the court should not have considered a community impact statement from a domestic violence group during sentencing, that the court improperly determined the maximum sentence on each count, and that the court was wrong in sentencing Dilley to consecutive sentences because the crimes were not separate episodes.

Dilley was convicted of manslaughter, but a term as long as 60 years is usually reserved for people convicted of murder, he said.