Alleged killer's court hearings postponed

SANDUSKY — The case for a man who allegedly killed and sexually assaulted a 3-year-old girl in Sandusky last September will have a monthslong delay before moving forward. Devin S. O'Brien, 30, of the 4000 block of Venice Road (U.S. 6), remains jailed in Erie County on multiple felony charges without bond. O'Brien's most recent court hearing took place on April 1. At the hearing, a pretrial conference, Erie County Common Pleas Court Judge Tygh Tone canceled a previously set Aug. 25 trial date at the request of attorneys for the prosecution and defense. O'Brien's next hearing will now occur on July 1, at which time a new trial date should be discussed. His charges O'Brien was indicted by an Erie County grand jury in early October on the following charges: • Four counts of aggravated murder, each an unclassified felony • Two counts of rape, each a first-degree felony • One count of attempted rape, a second-degree felony • One count of kidnapping, a first-degree felony • One count of felonious assault, a second-degree felony • One count of strangulation, a second-degree felony • One count of tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony • One count of gross abuse of a corpse, a fifth-degree felony The background O'Brien's charges stem from an incident that occurred on the evening of Sept. 12. He allegedly made a phone call to 911 stating that he believed that his "girlfriend's daughter and dog have been taken." O'Brien was arrested by Sandusky police officers a short time later after they had found the girl's body and booked him into the Erie County Jail the following day. An autopsy was conducted on the girl's body the following morning by the Lucas County Coroner's Office. The autopsy found that the child died as a result of strangulation and experienced blunt force trauma and sexual assault, Sandusky police Chief Jared Oliver previously told the Register. Authorities never publicly identified the victim, citing the victim's protection bill Marsy's Law. But, from online postings as well as a public fundraiser list at gofundme.com, others have identified the victim as Charlotte Willow Patterson. O'Brien was previously admitted into a Columbus-area psychiatric hospital on a court order to determine if he was a "danger to himself and in need of mental health services." The evaluation determined that he was not a danger and he was returned to Erie County.