Trial for man accused of double murder now set

Original date was Feb. 1; pushed back to Sept. due to coronavirus pandemic

The trial for Blake Sargi, accused of killing two people in Concord Township, will begin in September.

The trial for the man accused of shooting and killing two people in Concord Township last January is now scheduled to begin in September, court records show.

Blake Sargi, 28, is accused in the deaths of 38-year-old Heavenly Goddess Murphy-Jackson and 39-year-old William Larondez Jackson on Jan. 3, 2020. The victims were found in a white 2019 GMC Yukon parked on Andrea Drive in Concord Township.

Lake County Sheriff deputies arrested Sargi shortly afterward at his mother’s home on Oakridge Drive.

Jury selection was previously scheduled for Jan. 28 with an anticipated trial start date of Feb. 1. Sargi’s team of defense attorneys in December, however, asked for a continuance due to the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic.

The attorneys outlined several points arguing the pandemic “render(s) it impossible for (Sargi) to receive a fair trial with due process of law as mandated by the Fifth, Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution and Article 1, Section 10 of the Ohio Revised Code.”

The defense attorneys argued, among other things, that due to the ongoing pandemic many otherwise eligible prospective jurors will “elect to avoid jury service at this time for fear of infecting themselves and their families with this deadly virus.”

They also argued that it is “impossible to fairly assess the credibility of a potential juror or witness who is wearing a mask.”

They also argued that Sargi’s lead counsel, Angelo Leonardo, is 70 years old and in a high-risk category for the COVID-19 virus.

“The defendant has been compliant with all the requirements and conditions of release during the pendency of this action and there is no necessity to try this case on the scheduled date of Jan. 28, 2021, during the enhanced danger of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the defense attorneys wrote in their motion.

The Lake County Prosecutor’s Office agreed with the request for a continuance.

In a motion, prosecutors stated they expect the trial to last about two weeks and anticipate calling a significant number of witnesses to the stand.

“Due to the unusually large number of required witnesses, (the prosecutor’s office) acknowledges an increased likelihood of one of the various trial participants exhibiting symptoms of, or asymptomatically transmitting, COVID-19 during the course of the trial. This would result in the court being left with very few viable options if any, other than declaring a mistrial. A mistrial would not further the interests of justice, especially considering the severity of the charges.”

Lake County Common Pleas Court Judge Patrick J. Condon this month granted the continuance. A jury selection date is set for Sept. 16 with anticipated trial start date of Sept. 20.

Sargi is facing charges of four counts of aggravated murder and four counts of murder. All eight of those charges are unclassified felonies. He is also facing charges of four counts of first-degree felony aggravated robbery, four counts of second-degree felony robbery and two counts of fourth-degree felony aggravated drug trafficking.

According to the indictment, Sargi is accused of drug trafficking between Oct. 1, 2019, and Jan. 4, the date of his arrest.

With the exception of the drug trafficking charges, all counts carry firearm specifications that carry three-year mandatory prison terms if he is found guilty.

This is the second time a trial date was pushed back due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A trial was initially scheduled for August 2020, but was continued to lateJanuary after Sargi’s defense attorneys expressed similar concerns in July.

Lake County Sheriff Frank Leonbruno said in a January 2020 news conference dispatchers received a call shortly after 11 p.m., Jan. 3, from Sargi’s stepmother. She said her stepson had shot and killed two people. She said the victims were in a white vehicle parked on Andrea Drive in Concord Township.

Leonbruno said that deputies were immediately dispatched. Due to the nature of the call and threat of armed violence, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office SWAT team was dispatched.

When deputies arrived in the 7500 block of Andrea Drive they found the two victims inside of a 2019 White GMC Yukon. Leonbruno said both appeared to have been shot in the head and were dead. They were in the front driver’s side and front passenger seat of the vehicle.

Deputies secured that scene; detectives and the Lake County coroner were called.

Other deputies responded to the Oakridge Drive home where Sargi lives with his mother. Leonbruno said the father came out of the home and told authorities the mother was trying to convince Sargi to come out of the house

Sargi has been out of jail on bond since Jan. 7, 2020, when a family member posted a $1 million cashier’s check. Terms of his bond included being placed on Electronic Monitoring House Arrest and GPS monitoring.

and she feared what would happen to him.

After a SWAT negotiation, Sargi gave himself up to law enforcement and was arrested.

Sargi’s attorneys have previously said the shootings were in self-defense.

Sargi has been out of jail on bond since Jan. 7, 2020, when a family member posted a $1 million cashier’s check. Terms of his bond included being placed on Electronic Monitoring House Arrest and GPS monitoring. He is prohibited from using drugs and alcohol and is subject to random chemical testing. He is also prohibited from possessing or having under his direct control any firearms or other deadly weapons.

Sargi