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Van Wert County News Kennedy: Case Against Gibson Too Old
Last month, Van Wert County Prosecutor Charles F. Kennedy III quietly dismissed charges against Delaney Gibson, who along with John George Spirko Jr., was charged in the 1982 death of Elgin postmaster Betty Jane Mottinger. Now Spirko's attorney is claiming Kennedy's action shows, in his opinion, that the case against Spirko was weak to begin with. Kennedy dropped the charges on May 17, 2004, the same day the 6th U.S. Court of Appeals upheld Spirko's death sentence, which stems from his 1984 murder conviction in Van Wert County Common Pleas Court. Kennedy says the timing is coincidence, but Washington, D.C.., attorney Thomas Hill said he's not so sure. Gibson was released from a Kentucky prison three years ago after serving time on unrelated murder charges and Kennedy says the case is too old to try at this point. Meanwhile, Hill is basing a new appeal on the county prosecutor's decision to drop charges against Gibson in an attempt to get his client off Death Row.
Convicted murderer John George Spirko Jr. is asking for a full federal appeals court to hear his case. Spirko, who was convicted of the 1982 slaying of Elgin postmaster Betty Jane Mottinger and sentenced to death, says the state's case against him was weakened when Van Wert County Prosecutor Charles F. Kennedy III dropped charges against Spirko's co-defendant Delaney Gibson. Gibson, a friend of Spirko's, served 18 years in a Kentucky prison for an unrelated murder. A three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Court of Appeals had upheld Spirko's 1984 conviction by a 2-1 vote, but attorney Thomas Hill asked the full appeals court to hear the case on behalf of his client.
Source:Van Wert County News
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