LIMA — Jurors in the trial of Scott Seitz, an admitted former meth addict accused of attacking his one-time drug dealer with a baseball bat and stealing drugs from him, deliberated for more than five hours on Wednesday before delivering a mixed verdict.
The jury found Seitz, 41, guilty of felonious assault, a felony of the second degree, but were unable to reach a verdict on a first-degree felony charge of aggravated robbery.
Judge Terri Kohlrieser accepted the decision of jurors, who said they felt they would be unable to come to a unanimous decision even with additional deliberations, and ruled a mistrial on the aggravated robbery count, meaning prosecutors can re-try the case at a later date if they so choose.
Because of his conviction on the felonious assault charge, Kohlrieser revoked Seitz’s bond and ordered him taken into custody. A pre-sentence investigation was ordered.
Both charges against Seitz stemmed from his attack on Eric Glover, an admitted dealer in methamphetamine, on the evening of Oct. 8, 2019, at a West McKibben Street residence.
The conviction on the felonious assault charge was mostly a foregone conclusion after Seitz admitted from the witness stand Tuesday that he struck Glover with a baseball bat “because he (Glover) had ripped me off” in a previous drug transaction.
In his testimony, Seitz concluded that Glover “got what he deserved” after furnishing Seitz with five grams of “fake” meth several days earlier. Even defense attorney Carroll Creighton, during his closing arguments to jurors on Wednesday, conceded his client had committed a felony when he struck Glover. “That’s terrible, and he will be punished for that,” Creighton said.
The aggravated robbery count, on the other hand, was hotly contested by attorneys in their final remarks to jurors. At issue was whether or not Glover — in the moments following his assault — threw a bag of meth at Seitz’s feet. Glover testified that he did so, and that he was never paid for the drugs, while another witness, Michael Wireman, who was present at the time of the incident testified that he did not see Glover throw any drugs in Seitz’s direction.
Creighton reminded jurors that no drugs were found and that Seitz’s character was not on trial.
“There are no saints here. You may not like Scott. You may not like what he did. But please set your prejudices aside,” the defense attorney told jurors. “On the aggravated robbery charge you must vote to acquit.”
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