Juror talks about one-year anniversary of Widmer murder trial

HAMILTON TWP. — Jon Campbell and 11 other juror members found Ryan Wider guilty a year go of killing his wife in the bathtub of their home.

But Campbell, who outed fellow jurors in the murder trial, says today had he known better, the avalanche of court proceedings following the guilty verdict that eventually lead to a new trial could have been avoided.

Sitting in the Warren County Common Pleas Court jury room last April, Campbell said he knew it was questionable for several jurors to report drying experiments they conducted at home to the rest of the group. He said he didn’t know he could stop the proceedings by informing the court the improper deliberations were going on.

The jury took almost 23 hours dissecting the drowning death of Sarah Widmer, Ryan’s 24-year-old bride, ultimately finding April 2, that she died at his hand, in their home on Crested Owl Court in Hamilton Twp. in August 2008.

The crux of the drowning case was that the scene was virtually dry when first responders arrived about six minutes after Widmer dialed 911.

Campbell said a couple jurors, one in particular, was staunchly entrenched in a not guilty finding, until three jurors related how they experimented at home to see how long it takes to air-dry after bathing.

Campbell said he was thinking the experimentation discussion wasn’t proper, but he didn’t know he could report that activity to the court, knowledge that likely would have resulted in a mistrial.

Instead, after the verdict, and taking a much needed R&R after the grueling nine-day trial, he called Judge Neal Bronson’s court on April 6 and reported the misdeeds. He was told the court couldn’t take any action at that point, so he faxed defense attorney Charlie Rittgers. After an avalanche of court filings, juror affidavits and an appeal, Bronson granted a new trial. It starts May 10.

Campbell said he still thinks Widmer is guilty, but the process was tainted.

Campbell said he watched Widmer closely during the trial and he didn’t shed a tear when gruesome autopsy photos were displayed on a giant screen in the courtroom.

Campbell said attorneys for the prosecution and the new defense team should change their trial tactics, but he’s not offering any advice. Aside from Widmer’s demeanor, Campbell said one of the glaring facts he hung his guilty verdict on was that the bathroom was narrow and small, yet feces and blood were located near Sarah’s head and her lower body, which indicated to him her body was moved and then moved again.

Since Sarah’s body and the entire scene were virtually dry and only her blond hair was damp, prosecutors maintain Ryan drowned her either in the tub, the sink or the toilet. County Coroner Russell Uptegrove found internal bruising on her upper torso and thus determined she was murdered.

The defense maintains she often fell asleep in the tub and the bruising was caused by heroic efforts to resuscitate her. Medics tried unsuccessfully five times to intubate her, performed continuous chest compressions, and inserted IV lines in her neck and arms

The defense and prosecutors are talking little about the case and have not made many public moves. Before the first trial, subpoenas for witnesses were sent a couple months prior to the trial date. To date, only past employment records at General Electric and the U.S. Postal Service for Hamilton Twp. Lt. Jeff Braley, the chief investigator on the case, have been summoned.

Bronson has scheduled a juror hardship day on May 5, when potential jurors will come to court to explain why they are not able to serve on the new trial, which is expected to last three weeks.

Defense attorney Jay Clark said he believes about a 100 potential jurors will be called. The ability to seat a fair and impartial jury in Warren County will be a concern for the defense because of the national notoriety the trial has garnered.

Widmer is free on a $400,000 bond and is living with his mother, Jill Widmer, in Mason.

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