HOERIG TRIAL | She is guilty of aggravated murder

2 p.m.

WARREN

Claudia Hoerig has been found guilty of aggravated murder in the 2007 shooting death of her husband, Karl. The jury deliberated about three hours before reaching its verdict in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court.

She will be sentenced at 10 a.m. Feb. 8.

Trumbull County Prosecutor Dennis Watkins said he was pleased with the verdict after a "long journey," but he will reserve more comment until after the sentencing.

Paul Hoerig, brother of Karl Hoerig, called the the verdict "emotional" but likewise said he won't comment until after the sentencing. There is still a gag order in place in the case, Watkins noted. Claudia was herself emotional even before the verdict was read, holding a tissue up to her face. She continued to show her emotions after the verdict.

One of the jurors, Stephen Bistarkey, of Niles, said there were a number of factors that caused jurors to find her guilty, including the fact that Claudia bought a laser sight for her gun. A person committing suicide, as Claudia had claimed was the reason for buying a gun, does not need a laser sight, he said. He said the jurors were understanding of Claudia's allegations of abuse from Karl, "but you should never kill someone. Get a divorce. There's no reason to kill him."

This verdict brings a close to a chapter in the drama that touched on locations ranging from New York City to Newton Falls, Ohio; Brazil; the offices of the Trumbull County prosecutor and U.S. Tim Ryan of Howland, D-13th; and the U.S. State Department.

There was a nearly 11-year, diplomatic negotiation between the United States and Brazil over whether Hoerig, 54, ought to be extradited to the United States after fleeing to her native Brazil from Newton Falls after killing her husband in their Newton Falls home March 12, 2007.

Following decisions by Brazil’s supreme court, the Brazilian government did allow U.S. officials to come get her Jan. 17, 2018, and bring her back to Trumbull County.

Ryan said in a statement: “I am pleased that justice has been served in this monumental case. I want to thank Trumbull County Prosecutor Dennis Watkins and his team for their unwavering commitment and dedication to this case. I would also like to thank former Congressman John Boccieri for his longstanding efforts over the past decade. And a big thank you to the Hoerig family and support team for their cooperation and patience while we navigated a long and convoluted process to get Claudia extradited. Today could not have been possible without every person’s contribution – no matter how big or small. This has not been easy, but I hope today’s verdict delivers some sense of closure and justice to the Hoerig family,”

Claudia admitted killing her husband, but she has maintained she did not plan his killing. Premeditation is a requirement for her to be found guilty of aggravated murder.

Assistant Prosecutor Chris Becker said one of the elements prosecutors needed to prove in order for Claudia to be convicted of aggravated murder was premeditation, known in legal terms as “prior calculation and design.”

He said before deliberations that the jurors can consider the fact she fled back to her native Brazil after her husband’s death as “evidence of guilt.” She was in Brazil for nearly 11 years before the Brazilian government ordered her to be returned to the United States to stand trial.

Becker listed a series of remarks she made to law enforcement the night she was returned to the United States that called her believability into question.

For example, she paid $228 for a laser sight for her handgun a couple days before Karl died. A laser sight shoots out a light beam that helps a shooter aim the gun at a target.

Read more in Friday’s Vindicator and Vindy.com

1:44 p.m.

A verdict announcement is expected within 10 minutes in the Claudia Hoerig aggravated murder trial in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court.

9:55 a.m.

WARREN

The 12 jurors have gone to the jury room to begin deliberating the guilt or innocence of Claudia Hoerig in her aggravated murder trial following the reading of the jury instructions. The four alternates have been dismissed and will not be needed, Judge Andrew Logan said.

She is accused of plotting to gun down her husband Karl in their Newton Falls home in 2007.

Claudia, her attorneys and prosecutors were in the courtroom for the reading of the jury instructions, but none of the Hoerig family members who have been in the courtroom throughout the trial attended this morning.

It appears no one from Claudia's family has attended the trial.

A verdict would bring an end to a drama that touched on location ranging from New York City to Newton Falls, Ohio; Brazil; the offices of the Trumbull County prosecutor and U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan; and the U.S. State Department.

It could end a nearly 11-year, diplomatic negotiation between the United States and Brazil over whether Hoerig, 54, ought to be extradited to the United States after fleeing to her native Brazil from Newton Falls after killing her husband in their home March 12, 2007.

Following decisions by Brazil’s supreme court, the Brazilian government did allow U.S. officials to come get her Jan. 17, 2018, and bring her back to Trumbull County.

Claudia, a certified public accountant, has demonstrated an unwillingness to accept the legal advice of her attorneys, which were provided to her for free through the Ohio Public Defender’s Office.

And she has complained repeatedly outside of the court record in her Trumbull County Common Pleas Court aggravated murder case about her treatment in the county jail, her attorneys, prosecutors and the news media.

She discovered that she could file hand-written motions in federal court, and court officials there would allow the filings to be published to the federal court web site. As of Wednesday, she had filed eight motions and 20 other hand-written memoranda with Judge John R. Adams in Akron.

The filings frequently looked nothing like typical filings by a lawyer and covered a wide range of topics.

Yet none of the filings apparently addressed a topic Claudia brought up in cross examination Wednesday for the first time: She said she had been wearing a recording device on her wrist for the entire time she was with Karl.

It was unclear why the recordings were never part of the trial, but Claudia said she believed they were in the possession of the Trumbull County Sheriff’s office.

She said she even recorded the events of March 12, 2007, but had erased that recording while in Brazil.