Charges Filed in 2002 Murder Case
February 28, 2007
Scott A. Speer, 41, Fairlawn, Ohio, has been indicted on charges of Aggravated Murder and Murder. Speer is accused of causing the drowning death of 40 year old James Barnett of Barberton, Ohio in 2002. Investigators from the Danbury Township Police Department, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Watercraft, the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office, and the Ottawa County Drug Task Force report that in the early morning hours of August 6, 2002, Speer told officers he and Barnett were returning from Put in Bay on Speer’s boat, when Barnett fell overboard. Speer said he searched for Barnett, then called 911 from his cell phone. Barnett’s body was recovered the following day. Officers continued following tips which led them to information that Speer had not been forthcoming with details of events that led up to Barnett’s death.
In 2006, an Ottawa County Grand Jury indicted Speer on charges of Involuntary Manslaughter and Aggravated Vehicular Homicide. Prosecutor Mark Mulligan said that investigators continued to receive new information on the case, which led to the development of further details that supported the new charges.
Mr. Mulligan noted that an indictment is merely a formal charge in the Common Pleas Court, and does not denote guilt or innocence.
Contact the Ottawa County Prosecutors Office for further information
http://www.ottawacountysheriff.org/N...Indictment.htm
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