Federal appellate court upholds death sentence for Ohio killer

CINCINNATI (AP) — A federal appeals court has upheld the death sentence of an Ohio man condemned to die for fatally shooting two people in a 1992 robbery spree.

Today’s decision by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was the latest setback for Gary Otte, who has lost several previous appeals of his death sentence.

A three-judge panel sentenced the 39-year-old Otte to die for killing Robert Wasikowski in an apartment in Parma in suburban Cleveland on Feb. 12, 1992, and for killing Sharon Kostura in the same apartment complex the next day.

The 6th Circuit’s 2-1 decision rejected Otte’s arguments that he improperly waived his right to a jury trial, that he received poor legal representation and that his confession should have been suppressed.