Appeal denied, capital case scheduled for July in Repchic murder

YOUNGSTOWN

The Ohio Supreme Court has refused to hear an appeal for Aubrey Toney in the Sept. 25, 2010, drive-by shooting death of Thomas Repchic on the city’s South Side.

The move clears the way for his capital murder jury trial to begin July 15 before Judge Maureen A. Sweeney in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court.

Toney, 32, of Youngstown, appealed Sweeney’s decision to allow a witness, who is in the process of moving out of state, to give a pre-trial deposition, saying he is being denied his constitutional right to confront the witness in person in a trial.

Sweeney said the deposition would be used in court only if the witness is unavailable to testify at trial.

The 7th District Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal, saying Sweeney’s decision to allow the deposition was not a final appealable order.

Toney’s lawyer, John B. Juhasz, would have a right to cross-examine the witness in the deposition, just as he would in a trial, said Ralph Rivera, assistant county prosecutor.