UPDATE: 4:44 p.m.
In his closing argument, Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser said Bradley Young committed a reckless act in causing the death of 2-year-old Kinsley Kinner.
He told the jury to not to have sympathy for Young because he’s a veteran or a hard-working person.
Direct evidence, Gmoser said, shows Young was alone with Kinsley when she woke up screaming then went limp. He reminded the jury that four doctors testified the toddler died after abuse, and it happened minutes — not hours — after the abuse happened.
And the Butler County Coroner ruled Kinsley’s death was a homicide, not an accident.
Defense attorney Frank Schiavone III told the jury that Gmoser told “a good story,” but it’s irrelevant if Young was alone with Kinsley because the house was close quarters.
Schiavone III also reminded the jury that Young gave CPR to Kinsley and said the burden of proof has not been met.
In fact, Schiavone III says the person who he believes is guilty of this crime is already sitting in a prison cell, Kinsley’s mother, Rebekah Kinner.
Schiavone III said the “single-most important” piece of evidence is this case is the 911 tape, which Young could be heard counting CPR. He said Rebekah Kinner was outside as her daughter died on the kitchen floor.
UPDATE: 1:48 p.m.
Lawyers defending Bradley Young rested their case just before noon Monday after calling three witnesses. The defendant did not take the stand.
The first witness, Michael Rudie, one of Young’s bosses at Crane One Services, testified Young was with him on a job in Michigan from Aug. 2 to Dec. 2, 2015. He told police Young was a “good kid and a hard worker” but he also had a temper and “angry, short man’s syndrome.”
Chuck Diesbach, Young’s roommate at the Radabaugh Road house where 2-year-old Kinsley Kinner was found unresponsive, testified he saw the toddler on the night of Dec. 1 and was told she had hit her head in a car crash.
Diesbach said Young lived at his home, paying rent for about three months before the incident. In that time, he said he did not see Young hit Kinsley or Rebekah Kinner.
During the early morning hours of Dec. 2, Diesbach also said he did not hear any yelling or screaming from them.
Diesbach went to bed about 11:30 p.m., and the next thing he remembers on Dec. 2 was Rebekah Kinner throwing open his bedroom door, “screaming at the top of her lungs.”
Diesbach ran into the kitchen and said Kinsley was on the floor and Young was doing CPR.
When showed hospital photos of Kinsley with bruising on her face and arms, Diesbach said she looked nothing like that the night before.
The jurors are on a break and will be back at 2 p.m., possibly to hear closing arguments.
Young stands accused of murder in the death of 2-year-old Kinsley Kinner. His lawyers twice today asked a judge to dismiss the case.
Butler County Common Pleas Judge Keith Spaeth denied one request defense attorney Frank Schiavone III made for dismissal because of testimony from Rebekah Kinner last week.
Schiavone also moved for acquittal of Young on all charges because he said the state has not proven its case against him. Spaeth then denied that motion.
Schiavone said the state put Rebekah Kinner on the witness stand last week “knowing her mental state and that she would make false statements.”
“The state did nothing wrong,” Assistant Prosecutor Kelly Heile said.
Heile said prosecutors turned over all of Rebekah Kinner’s statements to defense.
Young is charged with murder, manslaughter and child abuse in the death of 2-year-old Kinsley Kinner in December.
Last week, Rebekah Kinner's 3-hour testimony was thrown out by Spaeth, who ruled her incompetent.
But texts messages between Rebekah Kinner and Young, some concerning hitting and slapping Kinsley, will be admitted as evidence.
When seeking dismissal, Schiavone said prosecutors presented no evidence Young was alone with Kinsley. Spaeth asked what the difference was if Young had been alone or if the mother watched.
When the defense said it is a circumstantial case, Spaeth said it “happens all the time.”
Attorneys began the day moving for admission of exhibits before the jury was brought in.
About the Author
