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Lane appeals conviction
(by Joseph Koziol Jr. - April 27, 2013)
Lane appeals conviction
By JOSEPH KOZIOL JR.
WARREN – Convicted Chardon High School murderer Thomas Lane III is appealing his conviction.
Court-appointed attorney Michael A. Partlow, representing Mr. Lane, filed the appeal April 18 with Ohio’s 11th District Court of Appeals. Mr. Partlow said Tuesday the initial filing is just a “convenience” for the court and that the grounds for the appeal will be spelled out after he has a chance to review court transcripts, which may take up to a month.
The initial grounds, he said, involved whether the binding over of Mr. Lane from Geauga County Juvenile Court to common pleas court was proper. Another question is whether it was proper to sentence a juvenile to life imprisonment without parole. Mr. Partlow said he plans to raise possible additional questions about the case once he reviews the transcripts.
Mr. Lane was 17 at the time he fired 10 shots that killed Danny Parmertor, 16, Russell King Jr., 17, and Demetrius Hewlin, 16, and wounded three others. Common pleas court Judge David Fuhry found Mr. Lane guilty of all charges stemming from the Feb. 27, 2012 shootings in the high school cafeteria.
Mr. Lane was sentenced to three consecutive terms of life imprisonment without parole. He also was sentenced to 37 years for the attempted murders of Nick Walczak, 18, and Nate Mueller, 18, and felonious assault of Joy Rickers, 19.
Mr. Lane showed contempt for the proceedings during the March 19 sentencing, wearing a shirt with “KILLER” written across the front. In his opportunity to speak, he again showed contempt using vulgarities while speaking to the victims and victim’s families.
In a related matter, Nationwide Property Casualty Insurance filed a complaint April 17 in common pleas court contesting claims filed by the victims’ families in a wrongful-death action filed immediately after sentencing. The suit, filed in Lake County Common Pleas Court, sought damages from Mr. Lane’s family in connection with the killings.
The insurance company has denied coverage for Jack and Carole Nolan under their homeowner’s policy. “The claims for bodily injuries and property damages against Lane in the wrongful-death case were “caused intentionally by or at the direction of an insured, including willful acts the result of which the insured knows or ought to know will follow from the insured’s conduct and are exclude from the policy’s coverage.”
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