A Warren County jury found a man from Somerville guilty of several felonies, including felonious assault, for firing at police officers in Turtlecreek Twp. in 2020.
He was cleared of attempted severe murder. After a chase that started at 18th Avenue in Middletown and ended in the 2600 block of Mason-Montgomery Road in Turtlecreek Twp., Christopher J. Hubbard, 38, and Middletown police Sgt. Dennis Jordan was shot soon before 5 o’clock.
A Warren County grand jury indicted Hubbard on December 21, 2020, for three counts of attempted murder and felonious assault: attempted aggravated murder and felonious assault for allegedly shooting Jordan; attempted aggravated murder and felonious assault for allegedly shooting Mike Barger, a deputy with the Butler County Sheriff’s Office; and attempted aggravated murder and felonious assault for allegedly shooting Brett Lee, an officer with the Ohio State Highway Patrol. The allegations include gun-related details that lengthen Hubbard’s sentence.
In addition, Hubbard was found guilty of a second-degree misdemeanor charge of attacking a police dog, two counts of possessing weapons when disabled, failure to comply, illegal handling of a firearm in a moving vehicle, and two other charges.
Koda, Jordan’s dog, tried to catch Hubbard while he was in the car. Gunfire missed the police canine. Jordan, who was wounded in the shoulder and finger, is now healthy and back on the force.
On the afternoon of August 31, 2020, according to the prosecution, Hubbard led law enforcement on a 28-mile pursuit from Middletown to Mason-Montgomery Road. Hubbard had previously told his family and his parole officer that he wouldn’t be returning to prison and that he planned to engage in gunfire with the police.
Hubbard may receive up to 11 years in jail on each count of felony assault, plus an extra seven years for discharging a gun at an officer, according to Warren County Prosecutor David Fornshell. The maximum sentence for the additional charges against him is more than 50 years in prison.
The sentencing guidelines remain the same because Hubbard could not have received a different punishment if found guilty of both attempted murder and felonious assault, according to Fornshell.
“He said, “I’m going to get into a gunfight with the police.” I won’t necessarily assassinate a police officer, “said Fornshell. “At the end of the day, the jury decided that he definitely realized that those were police officers and that he did exactly what he stated he was going to do, which engaged them in a shootout to the extent that they attempted to take him back to prison,”
After almost two hours of consideration, the decision was made public on Monday afternoon. 18 witnesses testified over the course of four days, and two films that caught the firefight were also viewed. Hubbard and Jordan both gave testimony. Tim Tepe, the Common Pleas Judge, has set January 23 as the day for sentencing.
According to an inquiry conducted by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Hubbard opened fire first, hitting Jordan, and eight policemen retaliated. The pursuit allegedly caused Hubbard’s PTSD to flare up, and he shot the police dog as it lunged at the window of his car out of self-defense, according to the defense counsel.
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