Ohio killer set for execution found hanged in cell
- Slagle was set to be executed Wednesday
- Authorities investigating how he was able to commit suicide
- D.A. had asked parole board to overturn death sentence
CLEVELAND - Convicted killer Billy Slagle, condemned to death for fatally stabbing a neighbor during a burglary, was found dead in his cell Sunday. He was scheduled to be executed Wednesday.
The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction said Slagle was found shortly after 5 a.m. hanging in his cell at at the Chillicothe Correctional Institution. He was pronounced dead at 6:11 a.m. ET
Attorney Vicki Werneke tells The Associated Press in an email that the defense had no warning that 44-year-old Billy Slagle might commit suicide.
JoeEllen Smith with the department said a comprehensive an investigation is underway on how Slagle was able to get material to commit the suicide.
Slagle was found guilty for repeatedly stabbing and killing 40-year-old Mari Ann Pope in 1987. Two young children she was watching were in the house.
In a rare move, the prosecutor in Cleveland asked the Ohio Parole Board to spare Slagle. Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Tim McGinty said jurors today, with the option of life without parole, would be unlikely to sentence Slagle to death.
The parole board and Gov. John Kasich both rejected mercy for Slagle.
Contributing: The Associated Press