Daniel deserves no parole in horrible Warren crime

In the annals of crime his- tory in Trumbull County, the cold-blooded murder of 65-year-old George Melnick and the vicious assault and attempted murder of his wife, Katherine, in a 1988 home invasion rank among the most heinous and despicable.

Today, some 31 years later, the details of those crimes continue to shock the senses.

On Aug. 15, 1988, Andre Williams and Christopher Daniel broke into the Melnicks’ home on Wick Street Southeast in Warren to commit a robbery that netted them a paltry $2,000 in cash, credit cards and a video-cassette recorder. The home invasion brought nothing but horror for the well-respected Melnicks.

In the process of rampaging through the home, Williams attacked George Melnick with a brick, killing him. Daniel then threw an 8-pound brick at Mrs. Melnick.

As a result, Katherine became permanently blind and suffered numerous facial fractures and a brain injury. She would spend the final 24 years of her life in a nursing home before dying at age 88 in 2012.

In a secretly recorded conversation a month after the brutal crime, Daniel as much as acknowledged his guilt: “The window got broke because that bitch [Mrs. Melnick] was standing by the window. It ricocheted off her head and went out the window.” Daniel then reportedly beat her repeatedly with an ax handle.

Williams was convicted and sentenced to death for aggravated murder in 1989, and both the Ohio 11th District Court of Appeals and Ohio Supreme Court upheld that verdict and sentence. Another appeal was rejected in April. He remains on death row three decades later awaiting execution.

For his part, Daniel was convicted of attempted murder, involuntary manslaughter in the death of George Melnick, aggravated burglary and aggravated robbery.

37-YEAR SENTENCE ORDERED

Former Trumbull County Common Pleas Court Judge Mitchell Shaker handed him an appropriate sentence of 37 years to life in state prison 30 years ago. Daniel has been serving that sentence at the Trumbull Correctional Institution in Warren.

Respected longtime Trumbull County Prosecutor Dennis Watkins remembers the repulsive case well.

“On the Richter scale of violence and suffering, these crimes are off the charts, which in my view, means no punishment can be too great for inmate Daniel,” Watkins said in a letter opposing parole for Daniel.

We strongly support Watkins’ staunch opposition to early release for Daniel, whose case comes before the Ohio Parole Board once again next month. As they have done three times previously, the board should spare no mercy for the demented Daniel and honor the late Judge Shaker’s plea that it not consider parole for him “until he has served 37 years of actual incarceration.”

So far, Daniel has served only about 30 years of that minimum sentence.

Despite emotional pleas from Daniel and his attorneys and allies, history is on the side of Watkins. Precedent makes it improbable that the parole board will grant Daniel’s request. After all, over the past few decades, the board has become much more reticent to approve parole for convicted felons, particularly those found guilty of violent offenses.

The number of inmates released on parole each year has dropped from thousands to dozens, and about 8,500 prisoners remain under the Ohio Parole Board’s jurisdiction, according to the Correctional Institution Inspection Committee.

Nationwide, the total number of those on community supervised parole today has fallen to its lowest level since 1999, according to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics.

That decline can be attributed to fears of recidivism upon release and an overall tougher resolve among members of the public that criminals must fulfill their entire sentences to pay for their transgressions and to respect the wishes of the American court system.

In previous hearings, the state’s parole board did the right thing by rejecting the release of Daniel.

In the name of justice for the victims and their families, board members should do likewise when they consider Daniel’s fate next month.