Posted on 02/03/2012 11:39:42 AM PST by marktwain
The Ohio Supreme Court declined Wednesday to hear the case of a 55-year-old Cleveland homeowner convicted in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court last year of killing an intruder.
When the 8th Ohio District Court of Appeals threw out the conviction of Carl Kozlosky and ordered a new trial, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Bill Mason appealed the decision. The Ohio Supreme Court's decision Wednesday returns the case to Common Pleas Court.
Kozlosky was sentenced last year to 18 years to life in prison for the shooting death of Andre Coleman on Sept. 20, 2009. Coleman broke into Kozlosky's house and began beating up Valerie McNaughton, who was Coleman's girlfriend.
Kozlosky testified at trial that he thought Coleman was reaching for a gun -- which investigators never found -- when he emptied his .38-caliber revolver into Coleman. Previous Plain Dealer coverage
* Appeals court overturns murder verdict in Cuyahoga County 'Castle Doctrine' case (Sept. 23, 2011)
* Cleveland man, 53, charged with aggravated murder in fatal shooting of man who invaded his home (Sept. 22, 2009)
Coleman, who had previously been convicted of involuntary manslaughter in 1997, had been on an all-night crack binge, according to court testimony, when he broke down the back door of Kozlosky's Cherokee Avenue home to get money or drugs from McNaughton.
Attorneys for Kozlosky have argued that his case was one of self-defense that fell under the Castle Doctrine. It is a law updated in 2008 by the Ohio legislature to give people an automatic assumption that they act in self-defense when using lethal force against someone illegally entering their home.
Cuyahoga County Assistant Prosecutors Matthew Meyer and Michael O'Malley said prosecutors will review the evidence to determine if they will bring new charges against Kozlosky. He has been free since Nov. 2 after posting a $10,000 bond.
"The Castle Doctrine gives a presumption people can defend themselves in their home," Meyer said. "In some cases, the government has to overcome the presumption."
Added Timothy Sweeney, Koslosky's appellate attorney, "The Ohio Supreme Court's decision is certainly good news." He declined to comment further.
Because 18 wasn’t enough to stop the threat, and 20 would have been more than necessary.
States and municipalities have to be liable for all costs and attorney fees in these castle doctrine / home cases.
the case NEVER should have been brought.
since prosecutors will not learn, then they should be forced to pay out of their budgets until they learn.
Sounds like a T.E.D. ......
Threat elimination drill.
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