Man found guilty of murder

PERKINS TWP — The murder trial of Demetrius Hall ended Thursday with a guilty verdict. Hall, 30, was convicted on aggravated murder for the killing of Cevin Stanley, the man who was stabbed to death at the Golden Corral on Dec. 8, 2019. "I think the verdict was no surprise," Erie County prosecutor Kevin Baxter said. "The jury did a good job in analyzing the evidence and applying the law, and they came to the right verdict." Jury deliberation lasted less than an hour. In closing statements, Baxter urged the jury to deliberate the hard evidence, including the security footage that captured the killing. "The evidence makes it very obvious that the defendant is guilty of murder; this was an ambush; this was a surprise attack," Baxter told the jury. "The evidence is there, don't ignore the obvious, follow the evidence." Defense attorney Russell Leffler continued to argue that the inherent briefness of the incident, about four minutes, didn't show sufficient prior calculation or purpose to warrant an aggravated murder charge. "We have someone who was murdered over nothing, and four minutes is not that long," Leffler said. "That's not much prior calculation." There is no specific amount of time to prove prior calculation and design listed in the Ohio Revised Code for aggravated murder. "Thirty seconds," Leffler said when describing the attack. "Is that what we're really going to say is enough prior calculation?" Baxter said the security footage that showed Hall waiting in the parking lot proved the element of planning. "The video evidence supports that there was deliberation and time put into this plan," Baxter said. "It applies the standard beyond a reasonable doubt that it was a purposeful killing with prior calculation and design." Hall took the stand on his last day of trial. Most of his answers were quiet, clipped and vague. Hall admitted to stabbing Stanley but denied hiding the knife the next day. "If I get caught, the knife doesn't go to jail, I go to jail," Hall said. "I would've hidden myself." Hall and his then-girlfriend Tausha Patch were picked up by officers in Fremont the day after the murder. When asked how he felt about stabbing Stanley, Hall replied, "bad". The courtroom was tense before the verdict was read. The public gallery was at capacity. Stanley's friends and family were there. "It was a big relief," said Brandie Carolus, Stanley's sister. "Cevin didn't have a voice. We have to be the voice for Cevin and our family." Stanley's uncle, Dirk Jenkins, said Stanley would be happy with the outcome and with the efforts of the prosecution office, including victims' advocate Sarah Reynolds, who assisted the family through the trial. "He would want to hug Sarah," Jenkins said. "He would want us to be comfortable, and she provided a lot." Shelley Siddell, Stanley's girlfriend and mother of his two children, described Stanley as a diligent worker and a bright person. "He was a hard worker, he was always working," Siddell said. "He was the light in the room." Baxter credited video cameras and surveillance footage for providing strong evidence, which has been featured more in courtrooms as technology becomes more accessible. "I look at this as the new DNA. Now we have video cameras everywhere," Baxter said. Baxter said several of his open cases include an exhibit of video evidence. "It's a new technology from the standpoint that they seem to catch a lot of activity, including homicides," Baxter said. "That's something we are looking forward to assisting law enforcement with solving these crimes." Perkins police Chief Vince Donald and Detective Joseph Rotuno were present for the verdict. Baxter commended their quick apprehension of Hall the day after the stabbing. "I have to give tribute to the Perkins Police Department," Baxter said. "They did a great job in this investigation." Patch, who allegedly drove Hall from the scene the night of the murder, is charged with complicity to murder and tampering of evidence. Patch is scheduled for a pretrial hearing on Aug. 31. Hall will face sentencing on Monday afternoon.