Man who killed Ohio State student Reagan Tokes sentenced to life without parole
Man who killed Ohio State student Reagan Tokes sentenced to life without parole
COLUMBUS, Ohio — A man will spend the rest of his life in prison with no chance of parole after being convicted last week of the rape and murder of Ohio State student Reagan Tokes.
Brian Golsby, 30, could have been sentenced to death, but Common Pleas Court Judge Mark Serrott credited Golsby’s lawyers with saving his life, according to the Columbus Dispatch.
“I hope you don’t waste their efforts ... you’re standing here alive because of your lawyers,” Serrott said. “I hope you know that.”
Jury convicts man of murder of Ohio State student Reagan Tokes
The Blade reports the jury deadlocked, 8-4, on whether Golsby should be sentenced to death. It then made a unanimous recommendation that Golsby be sentenced to life with no chance of parole.
Serrott sentenced Golsby to three life sentences.
Juror Courtney Rose tells 10tv.com that deliberations on the sentencing were emotional and tense.
“It tore me up every night,” Rose says.
Golsby kept his head down and showed no emotion during the sentencing, reports say. When asked by the judge if he wanted to comment, the Blade reports he said, “No, your honor. Thank you.”
Tokes’ family called the verdict a partial victory, the Dispatch reports.
“It doesn’t change anything for us,” Tokes’ mother, Lisa McCrary-Tokes, tells the Blade. “We still walk away from here a family that has lost a daughter, a sister, a cousin, a niece, a grandchild. What it does give us today is closure from this portion. We can walk away knowing this is not looming over our heads.”
Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien tells the Dispatch he’s satisfied with the sentence despite his push for the death penalty.
“I don’t think we would have done, nor could have done, anything different than what we did do in this case,” he said.
Golsby killed Tokes, of Maumee, Ohio, a suburb of Toledo, on Feb. 8, 2017. Police say he abducted Tokes at about 9:45 p.m., shortly after she left her work shift at a Columbus bar.
He reportedly forced her to withdraw $60 from an ATM, then made her drive them in her car to Scioto Grove Metro Park in Grove City.
Golsby then raped Tokes before shooting her twice in the head, killing her, police say. Tokes’ body was found the next day in the park.
Defense lawyer Diane Menashe says the jury’s decision to spare Golsby’s life “showed me that there’s humanity out there.”
“For the first time in his life, in particular the last three days, Brian has seen two individuals fight for him like no one’s ever fought for him before,” Menashe tells The Blade. “And I see a change in him... Each one of us needs someone in this world to stand up and fight for them.”
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