Summit County prosecutors said Monday they intend to seek the death penalty for a series of killings believed to be perpetrated by the prime suspect in the Craigslist shootings.
No formal indictment has yet to be brought against Richard Beasley, but Prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh issued a statement that the Akron man will be charged with three murders and an attempted murder. She also said her office will seek the death penalty.
Beasley, 52, is accused of placing a bogus Craigslist help-wanted ad to lure the men to their deaths. The bodies of two men were found buried in Noble County; a third was found in Akron. A fourth victim survived a gunshot wound while in Noble County.
There has been speculation about jurisdiction as the case has unfolded the past three weeks. While it appears three victims were attacked in Noble County, the original Internet ad was placed and some “job interviews” were conducted in Akron.
Adding to the jurisdictional quandary was the involvement of FBI agents looking at crimes taking place across state lines and the potential for federal charges.
The jurisdiction confusion came to light Monday shortly after Walsh’s emailed statement to reporters.
Initially, a Walsh spokeswoman said the second suspect, Brogan Rafferty, 16, would also be tried in Summit County. However, the Noble County prosecutor disputed the notion in an interview Monday, saying he intends to prosecute the Stow-Munroe Falls High School junior in his county.
“I don’t plan on it,” Prosecutor Clifford Sickler said when asked whether Rafferty’s case would be moved to Summit County.
Families’ best interest
Walsh said the decision to try Beasley in Summit County came after discussions with Sickler, the Ohio Attorney General’s Office and U.S. attorneys from Ohio’s northern and southern districts.
Walsh said the decision came down to the “best interest of the victims and their families.”
“In trying the case in Summit County, we will ensure the surviving victim and the families of the other victims do not suffer through multiple lengthy trials and will provide a more convenient location for at least some of the families and the surviving victim,” she said.
Rhonda Kotnik, an Akron attorney representing Beasley, said she intended to meet with him Monday afternoon at the county jail. She could not immediately comment about Walsh’s statement.
Authorities say it appears all four victims responded to a Craigslist ad that sought someone to oversee a large farm in Noble County. The victims were middle-aged, unemployed men with little money.
The first Craigslist victim, David Pauley, 51, was lured from Virginia to Noble County, presumably in October, and was later shot to death.
The second victim, Scott Davis, 48, is a former Canton resident who was living in South Carolina. He was wounded while touring the property with two men — believed to be Beasley and Rafferty — on Nov. 6. He escaped and hid in a wooded area in southern Ohio for seven hours.
The body of Timothy Kern, 47, of Massillon, was found in Akron on Nov. 25. He had been missing for about two weeks. The body of Ralph Geiger, 56, was found in Noble County that same day. Friends say he last was seen in August.
Beasley is being held in the Summit County Jail without bond on unrelated prostitution and drug-trafficking charges. He has been named in court records as a suspect in the shootings of Pauley and Davis.
Not eligible for death
Rafferty is being held in a detention center in Zanesville. He has been charged with murder and attempted murder and is expected to be tried as an adult. Because he was a minor when the crimes were committed, he is not eligible for the death penalty.
Phil Trexler can be reached at 330-996-3717 or ptrexler@thebeaconjournal.com.
