PORTAGE COUNTY Shooting suspect's trial starts
Trimble is accused of killing his girlfriend, her son and a Kent State student.
RAVENNA (AP) -- A prosecutor is taking some risks in trying to prove 21 counts against a man charged with fatally shooting three people, criminal justice experts say.
James Trimble's trial on three counts of aggravated murder and 18 other charges in a January shooting rampage is scheduled to begin today in Portage County Common Pleas Court in this Northeast Ohio city.
Trimble, 45, of Brimfield Township, pleaded innocent by reason of insanity. While he could get the death penalty if convicted of any of the aggravated murder counts, county Prosecutor Victor Vigluicci has decided to present evidence and witness testimony aimed at proving 21 counts of the 22-count indictment against Trimble.
Strategy called risky
Vigluicci is taking a chance on alienating jurors by throwing so much evidence and information at them, and possibly extending the length of the trial, the criminal justice experts said.
"You prolong the trial, and from a tactical standpoint you run the risk that the jury becomes impatient, becomes frustrated," said Geoffrey S. Mearns, dean of the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law and a former federal prosecutor.
Mearns also said that any time a prosecutor introduces a new episode or a new charge, it can present an opportunity for the defense to demonstrate that a particular witness is not credible.
"Sometimes -- but not often -- a defense counsel can exploit one of those opportunities and then be able to argue to the jury that the whole case is lacking in credibility," said Mearns.
Judge John A. Enlow has prohibited both sides from commenting on the case outside of court.
The charges
Trimble is accused of fatally shooting girlfriend Renee L. Bauer, 42, and her 7-year-old son, Dakota, on the night of Jan. 21 at Trimble's home. He also is charged with the slaying in Brimfield Township of Kent State University student Sarah Positano, 22, who police say was taken hostage by Trimble later that night.
In addition to the three aggravated murder counts, the prosecution also chose to proceed with 12 counts of attempted murder over allegations Trimble fired at officers pursuing him after the first two shootings; three counts of kidnapping; two counts of felonious assault; and one count of aggravated burglary for the alleged break-in at Positano's apartment.
Tom Adgate, a defense lawyer in Akron, said the best thing Trimble's attorney, Dennis Day Lager, has going for him is the large number of charges.