Grand jury indicts Ritze, Johnson for murder in 5-count indictment
Lead Summary
By
Caitlin Forsha-crforsha@gmail.com
Nathan Ritze and Whitney Johnson were both indicted on charges of murder in a five-count indictment issued by a Highland County grand jury Tuesday.
In separate indictments, Ritze and Johnson were both charged with murder, an unclassified felony; involuntary manslaughter, a felony of the first degree; child endangering, a felony of the third degree; tampering with evidence, a felony of the third degree; and abuse of a corpse, a felony of the fifth degree.
"The Grand Jury listened to all the evidence, and those are the charges that they found with the evidence," Highland County Prosecutor Anneka Collins said. "They considered the evidence for a long time.
"We will do our best to prove the case now."
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Ritze, 25, and Johnson, 26, had previously been charged with abuse of a corpse, a felony of the fifth degree, and tampering with evidence, a felony of the third degree, in a case involving Johnson's infant son being buried on a Diven Road property.
As previously reported in The Highland County Press, on May 30 at 11:53 p.m., the Hillsboro Police Department received a report of a suspicious death of a 1-year-old child. The remains of a small child were found in a wooded area off of Diven Road. The investigation found that the infant had been buried there on Dec. 19, 2012.
Ritze and Johnson had appeared before Hillsboro Municipal Court Judge David McKenna in June, who set the bond for each at $100,000 and bound the case over to the Highland County Grand Jury.
Johnson and Ritze will next appear before Highland County Common Pleas Court Judge Rocky Coss for an arraignment. According to the Highland County Clerk of Courts office, a date will be set by the court at a later time.
In separate indictments, Ritze and Johnson were both charged with murder, an unclassified felony; involuntary manslaughter, a felony of the first degree; child endangering, a felony of the third degree; tampering with evidence, a felony of the third degree; and abuse of a corpse, a felony of the fifth degree.
"The Grand Jury listened to all the evidence, and those are the charges that they found with the evidence," Highland County Prosecutor Anneka Collins said. "They considered the evidence for a long time.
"We will do our best to prove the case now."
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Ritze, 25, and Johnson, 26, had previously been charged with abuse of a corpse, a felony of the fifth degree, and tampering with evidence, a felony of the third degree, in a case involving Johnson's infant son being buried on a Diven Road property.
As previously reported in The Highland County Press, on May 30 at 11:53 p.m., the Hillsboro Police Department received a report of a suspicious death of a 1-year-old child. The remains of a small child were found in a wooded area off of Diven Road. The investigation found that the infant had been buried there on Dec. 19, 2012.
Ritze and Johnson had appeared before Hillsboro Municipal Court Judge David McKenna in June, who set the bond for each at $100,000 and bound the case over to the Highland County Grand Jury.
Johnson and Ritze will next appear before Highland County Common Pleas Court Judge Rocky Coss for an arraignment. According to the Highland County Clerk of Courts office, a date will be set by the court at a later time.