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Widmer jury to make house visit
Written by Janice Morse • jmorse@enquirer.com | Wednesday, 07 April 2010 16:17
(3 votes)

When Ryan Widmer's case heads for a retrial in Warren County, jurors will be allowed to see inside the Hamilton Township home where his wife of four months, Sarah, drowned in their bathtub in August 2008.

Judge Neal Bronson granted defense lawyers' request that jurors be permitted to view the scene -- not just the bathtub, which authorities hauled into court during his last trial, says Matt Nolan, spokesman for the Warren County Prosecutor's Office.

Bronson voided Widmer's murder conviction because of jury misconduct and ordered a new trial, which is now set for May 10 in Common Pleas Court.

The Widmers' home on Crested Owl Court went into foreclosure and was sold at sheriff's auction back to the bank that held the mortgage earlier this year.

The exchange of ownership could complicate the situation, Nolan said.

Widmer, 29, was freed Sept. 4 on $400,000 bond after Bronson ruled jurors violated his right to a fair trial when some of them performed home experiments on how long it takes a body to air-dry after bathing or showering, then discussed the results during deliberations.

The wet-dry issue was key. Police and paramedics who were first to respond testified they were suspicious of Widmer's account of events when they discovered that his 24-year-old wife's skin seemed to be dry or "not overly moist" while her hair was wet or damp.

Widmer has been under orders to have no contact with the family of his deceased wife, and to adhere to a curfew from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. while living with his mother in Mason.

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20100407/NEWS0107/304070092/1055/NEWS/Widmer+jury+to+visit+house
 
Ohio Innocence Project Event
Written by Mike Mayleben | Saturday, 12 September 2009 16:22
(3 votes)
Ohio Innocence Project Event
The Cincinnati Museum Center, the Rosenthal Institute for Justice/Ohio Innocence Project, and the YWCA of Greater Cincinnati will host Jennifer Thompson-Cannino and Ronald Cotton to speak about their book, Picking Cotton: Our Memoir of Injustice and Redemption.
Read more...
 
Bond lowered to 400K, Ryan to be released!
Written by Mike Mayleben | Friday, 04 September 2009 12:29
(0 votes)

A few minutes ago Judge Neal Bronson lowered the bond for Ryan Widmer back down to 400K which is being posted! Providing everything goes the way it is suppose to, Ryan should be released TODAY. Ryan and the family's goal was to have him out on bond before the Labor Day holiday. Thanks to all of our spectacular Supporter's, this is possible. THANK YOU!

Ryan has been released!
 
Appeals court allows Widmer retrial
Written by Janice Morse • jmorse@enquirer.com | Thursday, 03 September 2009 16:32
(3 votes)

An appeals court’s decision means a new trial for Ryan Widmer, legal experts say, unless prosecutors somehow persuade the Ohio Supreme Court to take the case.

On Thursday, the Ohio 12th District Court of Appeals denied prosecutors’ attempt to have the retrial order of a Warren County judge overturned in the controversial, closely watched case.

Newlywed Widmer, 28, was convicted in April of murder in the bathtub drowning of his wife, Sarah, 24, in Warren’s Hamilton Township. She died Aug. 11, 2008.

But in July, Judge Neal Bronson set aside Widmer’s conviction, citing jury misconduct.

Prosecutors declined immediate comment about the appeals court’s decision. They were unsure whether they would attempt an appeal to the Ohio Supreme Court.

One of Widmer’s lawyers, Pierre Bergeron, noted the appeals court didn’t reveal its rationale for the decision, so he cannot say what factors resonated with the court.
“We made all of our points about why the appeal should not go forward…and we’re happy that the court of appeals agreed with our position,” he said.

In light of the decision, Widmer’s lawyers are seeking a reduction in their client’s $1 million bond as he awaits his retrial, which has not been set. A bond hearing is set for today.

Meanwhile, prosecutors’ chances of success at the state Supreme Court are probably worse than they were at the appeals court level, says attorney Mike Allen, a former Hamilton County prosecutor and trial judge.

“It was an uphill battle, I think, for the prosecutor’s office from the beginning with the court of appeals….but I think she had to try,” he said, referring to Warren County Prosecutor Rachel Hutzel. “I think it would be an even more uphill battle with the Ohio Supreme Court.”

Absent some “glaring constitutional error,” higher-level courts tend to defer to the judgments of lower-court judges, Allen said.

He thinks the appeals court made the right call because there was clear evidence that jurors violated Widmer’s right to confronting witnesses.

Several jurors, in effect, became witnesses when they conducted home experiments on how long it takes a person to air-dry after bathing, then discussed their findings during deliberations. At least one juror said the discussion helped sway her vote to convict Widmer.

“When those jurors conducted those experiments that clearly, clearly Judge Bronson told them not to do, they denied Mr. Widmer his right of confrontation…I think he deserves a new trial. I think Judge Bronson is right, the appeals court is right – and a new trial is appropriate and in order, no matter how much it costs.”

 
 
What's next in the Widmer case?
Written by Janice Morse • jmorse@enquirer.com | Saturday, 25 July 2009 17:14
(2 votes)

Now that a Warren County judge has ruled juror misconduct tainted Ryan Widmer's trial in the bathtub drowning of his wife, the controversial case heads into somewhat unchartered legal territory.

Sarah Widmer, 24, died Aug. 11 in the couple's Hamilton Township home. Now, Ryan Widmer's murder conviction, handed down April 2, is void. He is presumed innocent again while he faces a new trial.

Widmer, 28, had been serving a sentence of 15 years to life in state prison. He was transferred back to the Warren County jail Friday.

He could be freed on bond while awaiting retrial, but only if supporters raise enough to post $1 million in cash, $2 million in equity in Warren County propert, or make some other arrangement with a bondsman -- likely a non-refundable $100,000 cash fee plus property leins as collateral.

Within the next few days, prosecutors intend to appeal Judge Neal Bronson's ruling granting the new trial. It's unclear whether the Ohio 12th District Court of Appeals, Middletown, will accept the case.

As the legal battle continues, here are some of the key issues in the case:

What if the appeals court reverses Bronson's decision?

The original murder conviction and sentence would be reinstated. Widmer would be returned to state prison, unless his lawyers persuade a court to put that action on hold pending appeal. Defense lawyer Mark Godsey said lawyers would appeal to the Ohio Supreme Court, and if Widmer did not succeed there, they would take the case to the federal court system.

If the appeals court supports Bronson's ruling, when would a new trial be held?

It's unclear.

While prosecutors say they must hold a retrial in a "reasonable time," Widmer's trial lawyer, Charlie Rittgers, thinks the state's speedy trial rules apply.

Generally, if the defendant is locked up, the time limit is 90 days. If he is free on bond, the time limit is 270 days.

Certain procedures can freeze the time and extend the deadline.

Would the retrial be held locally or be moved to another community?

In highly publicized cases, lawyers sometimes seek a "change of venue," moving the trial to another community to ensure a fair and impartial jury. Warren County Prosecutor Rachel Hutzel has said she knows of no trial being removed from the county during her 16 years as an assistant prosecutor and lead prosecutor there.

Thaddeus Hoffmeister of Wyoming, who teaches law at the University of Dayton and is following the case, thinks there is a "fair" chance that a judge would grant a venue change.

Lawyers aren't saying whether they will seek one.

What are Widmer's chances of being found not guilty in a retrial?

Local legal experts say they don't know of anyone who tracks such data.

But Hoffmeister noted: "Acquittals are always difficult. However, the odds are more favorable during a retrial. Also, there is always the possibility of a hung jury."

What other key issues remain undecided?

Many details remain unresolved, including which prosecutors will handle the retrial, whether Widmer's lawyers will seek a trial by judge rather than a trial by jury, what new evidence might both sides present, and whether Widmer will testify in his own defense.
 
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