YOUNGSTOWN Killer granted judicial release
Prosecutor Paul Gains said the case involved a possible self-defense claim.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- A 21-year-old Steel Street man who pleaded guilty to killing one person and wounding another in 1998 was released early from prison Wednesday.
Judge James C. Evans of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court granted judicial release for Christian Ranalli Jr. Judicial release was formerly known as shock probation.
Ranalli was indicted in 1998 for murder and attempted murder.
What happened earlier
Authorities say he shot and killed 22-year-old Tommy Hubbert Jr. in the parking lot of an Elm Street convenience store July 31, 1998. Anthony McDowell, 21, was shot in the hip.
In 1999, Ranalli pleaded guilty to reduced charges of involuntary manslaughter and felonious assault. Judge Evans sentenced him to four years in prison for each count, with the sentences to be served at the same time.
There was also a mandatory three-year sentence because Ranalli used a gun.
Under Ohio law, Ranalli had to serve the entire term on the firearm charge and at least six months of the four-year sentence before becoming eligible for judicial release.
Self-defense issue
Prosecutor Paul Gains, who negotiated the original plea agreement, said there was a "big issue" of self-defense in the case because Hubbert was found with a gun. That's why the charges were reduced and prosecutors did not oppose Ranalli's request for early release.
Tonya Payne, who is the mother of Hubbert's 10-year-old daughter, and Ethel Artist, Hubbert's stepmother, pleaded with Judge Evans to deny Ranalli's request for early release and send him back to prison.
"I don't know everything that happened that day, but to take a life is wrong," Artist said.
Defense attorney Heidi Hanni said Ranalli has been rehabilitated and is ready to rejoin society.
Judge Evans ordered Ranalli to be released from prison and placed on probation for five years. Before returning home, Ranalli must complete a residential treatment program at Community Corrections Association.
Family angered
The decision angered Hubbert's family, who stormed out of the courtroom before the judge was finished.
Assistant Prosecutor Jay Macejko said Hubbert's mother, Olivia Hubbert, was also a victim of violent crime. She died from injuries she sustained when Christopher Love kicked her in the head several times at the Victory Annex housing complex.
Love was sentenced to life in prison earlier this week, also in common pleas court.
bjackson@vindy.com