Gmoser could not discuss what went on in the three-hour grand jury proceeding or the facts of the case, but he alleges Ashdown was not unprovoked.
“The proposed defendant did not brandish a knife until after he had received his first beating,” he said.
James Burke, bar manager and son of the property owner, Beverly Burke, who lives next to the bar, said he got a call around 11:30 p.m. that night from the bartender who said he needed to come right away to break up a fight. By the time he got there, it was too late.
Within seconds after arriving through the side entrance, Burke said he saw Powell stagger away from the fight near the front entrance of the bar, which sits at the corner of Hensel Place and North Second Street. Powell fell to the ground between the bar and the pool table, Burke said.
The victim was pronounced dead a short time later at The Fort Hamilton Hospital, according to police.
Contact this reporter at (513) 696-4525 or dcallahan@coxohio.com.
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