WAVERLY, OHIO — Defense lawyers for the man on trial in the 2016 mass killing of eight members of a rural Pike County family requested a mistrial Wednesday afternoon, arguing the graphic crime scene photos are prejudicial to his client.
After returning from a recess, John Parker asked Pike County Common Pleas Judge Randy Deering to declare a mistrial in the George Wagner IV trial after a morning filled with testimony from a Bureau of Criminal of Investigation special agent of the trailer of Frankie Rhoden and Hannah Hazel Gilley.
"They’re intended to gain sympathy from the jury,” Parker said. “To have the jury make an emotional reaction and to distract them from the disputed issues."
Special Prosecutor Angela Canepa argued the images, displayed on three digital monitors in court showed Rhoden and Gilley both shot in the head lying together in a blood saturated bed, were necessary and were directly relevant to the case.
"We will be able to connect the dots when Jake testifies," she said.
Wagner IV's younger brother, Jake Wagner, has agreed to testify against his brother in the trial.
"We have taken great care to avoid particularly gruesome photos,'' she said. "It's not the state's fault that there are eight victims."
Deering denied Parker's request.
Several family members, including Gilley's mother, and one member of the public watching the trial wept and left the courtroom.
It was the first of several contentious moments in a day filled with emotion as prosecutors repeated the process of methodically asking the agent in charge of evidence collection and the forensic pathologists questions — while showing photographs of the victims — off the second crime scene.
Wagner IV is charged with eight counts of aggravated murder tied to the shooting deaths of Christopher “Chris” Rhoden Sr., 40; Chris Rhoden’s former wife, Dana Manley Rhoden, 37; their children, Clarence “Frankie” Rhoden, 20, Hanna May Rhoden, 19, and Christopher “Chris” Rhoden Jr., 16; Frankie’s fiancee, Hannah Hazel Gilley, 20; Christopher Sr.’s brother Kenneth Rhoden, 44; and their cousin Gary Rhoden, 38.
Dr. Karen Looman, Hamilton County's Chief Deputy Coroner, testified that Gilley was shot five times in the face, including once in her left eye noting that she was not shot through the eyelid. Looman stopped shy of saying Gilley was awake when she was shot.
Gilley was also shot in the left side of her face and near the back of her head.
Later in her questioning, Canepa asked Looman if she could determine if Gilley was breastfeeding her infant son when she was killed. She was wearing only a nursing bra, which was unlatched in the front, and a pair of shorts.
Parker objected: “I don’t know why they are going through this in such excruciating detail.”
The lawyers then had a sidebar conversation with the judge before Canepa went back and continued her line of questioning of Looman.
"Her breasts were full, meaning she was lactating. It looked like she was lactating,'' Looman testified.
Looman also testified that Rhoden was shot three times in the head, including in the right cheek, once near the temple and once above his ear. The impact of the shooting fractured bones in his skull, she said and left him with blackened eyes.
Both Rhoden and Gilley were shot with .22-caliber bullets.
Earlier in the day, BCI Special Agent Todd Fortner testified that agents found four .22-caliber Remington casings under the bodies when they moved them from the bed. They found a fifth on the floor next to the bed. A live .22-caliber round was found across the room, but it was not the same brand as the casings, he said.
Fortner also testified that the front door of the trailer did not appear damaged and the deadbolt on the backdoor was unlocked. It was unclear from his testimony if the doorknob was locked. He also testified that a back bedroom window was found partially open.
He testified that he did not think it was a point of entry, but later said it was possible that an adult who was "smaller, more slender and agile" could possibly have entered the trailer through the window.
The trial, which is expected to last another four to six weeks, resumes tomorrow.
Links to other stories on Wednesday's proceedings:
Activity for students:
Document any AP style errors and note the fix in your response.
Compare and contrast the coverage of this blog post and the two of the above linked stories: What was the same, different, what was highlighted as news, what was left out. Which, in your opinion, provided the most well-rounded story? Explain your answer.
When so many graphic injuries are involved and being described like this, how do you decide how much detail to include in your story? Both articles give significantly less detail than you were provided while still showing the severity of the wounds and painting the full picture.
Is there any sort of precedent, especially in Ohio, for a mistrial to be granted?