FINGERHUT MURDER Jury finds man guilty in slaying

By PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
WARREN -- An 11-woman, one-man jury and four alternates will return to the Trumbull County Courthouse at noon Thursday to consider whether Nathaniel Jackson should serve life in prison or die for murdering Robert Fingerhut.
After three days of deliberations, the jury convicted Jackson on Friday on aggravated murder, burglary and robbery charges and firearms specifications. The jury will consider alternatives of death, life without parole and 25- or 30-year sentences, and will make a recommendation to Common Pleas Judge John Stuard.
Evidence
"Obviously, we are very pleased with the verdict. We are going to proceed with the next phase," said Prosecutor Dennis Watkins, who said he will seek the death penalty. With hundreds of items of evidence, Watkins said the case involved the most evidence of any criminal case he's ever tried.
Jackson, 30, of South Pearl Street, Youngstown, and Donna Roberts, 57, of Howland were charged with killing Fingerhut of Fonderlac Street, S.E., in his residence Dec. 11, 2001. Roberts and Fingerhut were divorced but living together at the time of his death. Roberts is scheduled to go on trial Nov. 18.
During Jackson's two-week trial, Watkins produced numerous letters from Jackson to Roberts, which he said showed the two were planning Fingerhut's murder. Watkins said Jackson waited for Fingerhut to arrive home.
Watkins said the letters showed Jackson and Roberts stayed in touch while Jackson was serving state prison time for receiving stolen property. Jackson was released from prison a few days before the murder.
Self-defense
The defense maintained Jackson acted in self-defense. Defense Atty. Anthony Consoldane said that Fingerhut brought Jackson to his home and started a fight and that Fingerhut pulled a gun on Jackson.
"I understand how they reached it. There was a lot of evidence that showed that there was some type of a plot that was being hatched to try and take his life," Consoldane said of the verdict.
However, he added that the prosecution "bootstrapped'' the robbery and burglary charges to the murder charge to make the case qualify for the death penalty. "I don't think that was really the intention of the Legislature," he said of the application of burglary and robbery charges in this case.
Therefore, Consoldane said he will argue to keep Jackson off death row.
He explained that the prosecution contends Jackson's entrance into the home to commit murder constitutes burglary, and Jackson's departure in a car owned by Roberts, but used by Fingerhut, constitutes robbery.
With five uniformed deputy sheriffs standing behind him, Jackson sat still and rested his right arm on the defense table, showing no emotion as the verdicts were rendered.
Judge Stuard reminded the jurors not to read or watch any news accounts of the case and not to discuss it with anyone.