Jury Recommends Life for Bobby Cutts Jr.

An Ohio jury has voted to spare former police officer Bobby Cutts Jr. from the death penalty for the killing of his girlfriend and their unborn child. After two days of deliberation, the jury voted to recommend a sentence of life with a chance of parole after 30 years.

However, the judge ordered that all of his sentences be served consecutively, effectively sentencing the 30-year-old Cutts to 57 years in prison. Stark County Common Pleas Judge Charles Brown Jr. refused a defense request to make the sentences concurrent.

Cutts literally begged for his life through tears Monday while testifying during the penalty phase. He also sobbed while testifying during the trial, telling the jury that Jessie Marie Davis died accidentally during an altercation then panicked.

'I Forgive You'

Assistant County Prosecutor Dennis Barr told jurors that the state has met its burden of proof for justifying a death sentence for Cutts. Barr told the jury that Cutts was a police officer who broke the laws he swore to uphold.

Before he was sentenced, members of Jessie Davis' family addressed the court. Her mother, Patty Porter, told Cutts that she hoped that he would be freed at some point so that he could be a part of his son Blake's life.

"I hope and pray I can raise him to forgive you," she told Cutts. "He knows what you did. You would not believe the stories he's told us. I do forgive you," she said.

See Also:
Jury Wants Life Sentence for Ohio Ex-Cop

Background:
The Murder of Jessie Davis

Forum:
Discuss The Jessie Davis Case

^{Photo: Family photo}