Fatal stabbing of girlfriend’s son to send man to prison

A man who fatally stabbed his girlfriend’s 23-year-old son during an argument in 2014 was sentenced Tuesday to six years in prison.

John C. Steward, 60, pleaded guilty to one count of involuntary manslaughter in the death of Antonio Burnett Jr.

The sentence, imposed by Franklin County Common Pleas Judge David Young, was recommended by prosecuting and defense attorneys as part of a plea agreement.

Steward stabbed Burnett once as they argued about 3 a.m. on Sept. 21, 2014, in a home on Manchester Avenue in North Linden, Assistant Prosecutor William Walton said. The knife entered Burnett’s abdomen and struck his heart.

Burnett was taken to OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 3:42 a.m.

Steward lived with Burnett and his mother in the Manchester Avenue home. The two men were close, and Steward treated Burnett like a son-in-law, defense attorney Sean Boyle said.

Steward gave a lengthy statement in court, saying Burnett was upset after a phone call with an ex-girlfriend when the confrontation occurred.

“He was hurting. His heart had been stepped on, and nobody realized that,” Steward said. “I put salt on the wounds. I should have let his mother to continue to talk to him. This shouldn’t have happened.

“God has forgiven me, I know. But I can’t forgive myself.”

Steward has already served more than three years in the county jail, which will count toward his prison sentence. A resolution to the case was delayed by problems with the availability of witnesses and Steward’s decision to change lawyers last year, Boyle said.

Steward