Man is sentenced in shooting death of father
A Canal Winchester man charged with murder last year for fatally shooting his father as he slept pleaded guilty Tuesday to a reduced offense of voluntary manslaughter under a plea agreement.
Stephen L. Ritter III, 24, was sentenced Tuesday by Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Dan Hawkins to a total of 14 years in prison. Ritter will be eligible for judicial release after serving eight-and-a-half years.
Fairfield County Sheriff's deputies were dispatched around 5:30 a.m. on Aug. 27, 2020 on a domestic violence report at a home on East Oak Street west of North Trine Street in Canal Winchester.
Ritter was arrested after deputies found Ritter's 50-year-old father, Stephan Lance Ritter II, had been fatally shot inside.
A deputy wrote in a complaint dated Aug. 28, 2020 that Ritter admitted to deputies on the scene that he had killed his father while the man slept.
Ritter was indicted by a Franklin County grand jury on two murder charges, one with a weapons specification.
As part of a plea agreement, Ritter pleaded guilty Tuesday to a reduced charge of voluntary manslaughter with a gun specification. The second murder charge was dismissed.
Judge Hawkins accepted the joint recommendation of the defense and prosecution when sentencing Ritter to 11 years for the single voluntary manslaughter count, plus an additional three years for the gun specification.
Ritter's defense attorney, Mark C. Collins, said Ritter struggled with mental health issues and also had access to guns, which were factors in the shooting.
"Unfortunately, this was a very unique case where my client's mother was also the victim's wife so it was a true tragedy,” Collins said. “Everyone worked to resolve the case and it's a very fair resolution. This allows everyone to move forward with the healing process." elagatta@dispatch.com. @Ericlagatta