Guilty: East Liverpool man back in jail for knife attack | News, Sports, Vacancies

Joseph Boyer talks with his lawyer T. Robert Bricker after he was found guilty. (Photo by Mary Ann Grayer)

LISBON — Joseph Boyer was asked to have a jury tell his side of the story about a 2022 knife attack on his ex-girlfriend, but a jury found him guilty Tuesday and he faces being sent back to prison for eight to 12 years.

“His explanation of what happened was rejected by the jury and frankly made no sense to me,” he said. D.C. Court of Common Pleas Judge Scott Washam said before sentencing the 52-year-old former East Liverpool resident.

Washam ordered Boyer sentenced to eight to 12 years in prison for felonious assault, a second-degree felony, and 18 months for domestic violence, a fourth-degree felony, to be served concurrently. He was given credit for 785 days already served since his arrest on July 7, 2022, the day of the attack in East Liverpool. The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections may decide to add up to four years on top of the eight years.

Assistant District Attorney Tammy Riley Jones, who prosecuted the case along with Assistant District Attorney Steve Iacovone, recommended a consecutive sentence of eight to 12 years in prison for the felony assault and one year for the domestic violence charge, for a total minimum of nine years. , the same recommendation and actual punishment. He was first sentenced in April 2023 before his conviction was overturned by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals and the case was remanded to the circuit. He initially pleaded guilty to both charges and then filed a motion to withdraw his plea before he was first sentenced. The judge denied the motion to withdraw the plea, which the appeals court said was an error.

The jury of 11 men and one woman returned guilty verdicts on both charges and made the additional finding that he had a previous conviction for domestic violence. The decision came just an hour after jurors received the case in a trial that began Monday morning.

“I think the jury came to the right verdict. We are, of course, very pleased that the victim has finally received justice.” Iacovone said after the sentencing.

Jones called the attack brutal and caused serious injuries to the victim’s neck and wrist, requiring surgery to repair tendons in the wrist and therapy. According to her, there is no reason to believe that the crime was committed by the victim. She also said Boyer showed no remorse for his behavior, effectively blaming everyone but himself.

The victim, who testified and was present at the sentencing and sentencing, chose not to go to trial, but Jones said she took comfort in knowing Boyer would not be able to harm her or anyone else.

“Obviously he was dealing with a lot of problems when this happened.” Defense attorney T. Robert Bricker spoke about his client.

Bricker suggested it might be more productive to give him probation so he could work on his problems rather than go to jail.

“I’m very sorry for what I did” Boyer said, saying he has asked the victim for forgiveness hundreds of times. “It’s between me, her and God.”

He said he hoped God could forgive him and that one day she could forgive him.

During a rambling account of their relationship and what he said happened on July 7, 2022, Boyer talked about how he and the victim met and he divorced his wife so he could be with her. They ended up living together and were both chronic drinking alcoholics. He admitted he should not have been at the Ogden Street house in East Liverpool where they lived because of a no-contact order issued when he was found guilty of domestic violence against her a month earlier.

He claimed he was intoxicated when he returned home on July 7, 2022, after spending the night across the street following an argument with the victim. He claimed that he woke her up in the bedroom, they had intercourse, and that she went to the bathroom and he went to the living room, where the roommate was, and she claimed that the victim was cheating on him with another man. The victim then came out and asked why she was saying that if she knew how he was.

He said there was a lot of yelling, he called her a whore, then said she grabbed the knife and he tried to take it from her, claiming they were fighting over the knife and he was on top of her, and stated he took it she had a butcher knife, looked down and saw that she had been cut. He then said she reached for another knife and “I stabbed her with this butcher knife. I hit her on the hand.

He said Edward Gregory, the man he claimed she cheated on him with, was on his way there and he told her to get out and ask him to take her to the hospital.

The victim’s testimony the day before was completely different, but consistent with what she said from the very beginning. She was sleeping on the sofa when he came in and began arguing with her, pulling her hair and then went into the kitchen and grabbed a knife, slashing her neck several times and cutting her wrist. She thought she was going to die.

Throughout his testimony, Boyer continued to say how much he loved her and claimed that his clothes were stained with blood when he hugged her before she left. He also had what Jones called excuses during his testimony to try to undermine other witness testimony earlier in the day regarding a jail call he made to the victim on July 22, 2022, and what he told a corrections officer at prison on July 8. , 2022.

Jennifer Tedrow, an investigator with the District Attorney’s Office, testified that she reviewed the jail summons, which was then presented to the jury. During a conversation between Boyer and the victim, he said he didn’t believe he did this to her and didn’t know why he picked up the knife. The victim can be heard asking him why her two knives were in his truck, and he said the only two knives he had were in her living room, where the attack took place.

Tedrow said prison call records show Boyer has tried to call the victim nearly 2,000 times since the attack, and only about 200 of the calls have been answered. The last call was literally last week. She reviewed more than 100 calls, and Boyer discussed the possibility of appearing in court with the victim.

“The accused did not want the victim to appear in court,” she said.

Former county corrections officer Marisha Haven also testified and said that when she accompanied Boyer to the arraignment room on July 8, 2022, she asked why he returned. She knew him because he had previously been in prison.

“He said his girlfriend cheated on him and he cut her throat.” Heaven said.

She thought he was joking and even asked if it was a joke, but he said no. She did not know why he was there at that moment and noted that normally there would have been two officers accompanying him in this case. At the time, one of the charges against him was attempted murder, but it was later dropped for legal reasons. She said he later threatened to kill her.

The State completed its position at 9:17 a.m. following Heaven’s testimony. Boyer was the only witness for the defense and claimed that he was beaten in jail after his arrest, and he heard some other officers say that he had cut his old lady’s throat, and he only repeated what they said when he made a statement to Heaven. He claimed that he never threatened to kill anyone, including the victim, Gregory, Haven and anyone else who claimed he did it.

“I’m sorry I picked up the knife” – he said.

“It was a real moment. I never wanted that girl to get hurt.” he said about the victim, adding “I will love her until the day I take my last breath.”

During closing arguments, Iacovone addressed both charges, explaining how all elements of each were proven beyond a reasonable doubt. He said the defendant’s version of events made no sense and asked jurors to be mindful of the behavior of the victim and the defendant during their testimony.

Bricker said his client was truthful and asked the jury to consider inconsistencies in the victim’s testimony. He said the evidence did not prove it was a brutal attack. Jones disagreed, saying it was a vicious and brutal attack, and the defendant explained what he did. The injuries were not accidental.

Washam advised Boyer of his right to appeal his conviction.

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