A 62-year-old Cincinnati man accused of turning a Millvale birthday party into a triple murder will stay behind bars as he waits for trial. Today, a Hamilton County judge ordered James A. Lewis held without bond on three counts of murder tied to a June shooting that prosecutors say started with an argument in a crowded apartment kitchen.
Police say the gunfire erupted late on June 20 during a birthday celebration at an apartment on Millvale Court and ended with three people dead: Kenneth Burton, 38, Brenea Burton, 41, and Theresa Dudley, 53, according to WHIO. Officer Sarah Cronin told the court the violence started after an argument in the kitchen and that one victim tried to escape into the street before she was chased down and killed, the outlet reported. Days later, police announced Lewis’s arrest and the murder charges while investigators were still interviewing guests and combing through video, according to FOX19.
Judge Orders No Bail After Prosecutors Lay Out Evidence
Today's hearing in Hamilton County, Judge Virginia Tallent agreed with prosecutors that Lewis should not be released, ruling that “no condition of release would reasonably assure the safety of the community,” according to The Cincinnati Enquirer. Prosecutors told the court they have surveillance footage showing a red Chevrolet Trax leaving the apartment complex minutes after the shooting, and said at least one witness placed Lewis inside the unit where the argument broke out, the newspaper reported.
Defense attorney Connor Reilly pushed back on that picture, noting that a second witness failed to pick Lewis out of police photo arrays and that the one person who did identify him from the apartment was only “70-percent sure.” For now, the judge sided with the prosecution’s version of events in keeping Lewis locked up.
Criminal Record And What Comes Next
Lewis has a lengthy criminal record, including an aggravated robbery conviction from the 1980s that prosecutors say makes it illegal for him to possess firearms, according to WLWT. At a June arraignment, a judge initially set his bond at 3 million dollars secured. Prosecutors later presented the case to a grand jury, which returned an indictment sending the case into Hamilton County Common Pleas Court.
Lewis remains held at the Hamilton County Justice Center while detectives continue reviewing surveillance footage and interviewing witnesses. In common pleas court, the case will move into the slower grind of pretrial motions, discovery, and scheduling that will eventually determine when a jury hears the evidence.
How Ohio Law Lets Judges Deny Bail
Under Ohio law, judges can order certain felony defendants, including those charged with murder, held without bond if prosecutors show by clear and convincing evidence that the case against them appears strong and that no set of release conditions would reasonably protect the public. Those rules are spelled out in the Ohio Revised Code sections 2937.011 and 2937.222, which require a formal hearing and some procedural safeguards but still give judges considerable leeway to keep defendants in custody before trial. Defense lawyers can ask the court to revisit bond later if new information or conditions emerge.
Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval has called the Millvale killings “a horrific act of violence” and said the city would spare no resources in the investigation, local coverage reported. In the weeks since, family members and neighbors have held vigils for the three victims and set up funds to help cover funeral expenses as the Millvale community tries to process what happened and waits for answers in court, according to FOX19.
