Former Thompson Township resident Rita Griefenstein, 67, pleaded not guilty to one count of voluntary manslaughter in her arraignment Friday morning in front of Common Pleas Court Judge David L. Fuhry.
Fuhry also continued her bond at $15,000, which also prohibited contact with her children and no possession of firearms. Griefenstein allegedly shot her husband, Peter, 68, in the chest with a .380-caliber handgun during an Oct. 11, 2013, domestic dispute at the Rustic Pines Mobile Home Park in Thompson Township.
A grand jury indicted her March 5 on the manslaughter count, a first-degree felony. The count had two firearm-related specifications, Fuhry said.
Rita made her initial appearance in Chardon Municipal Court on Oct. 15. A regular bond was set at 10 percent of $15,000, which she posted a day later, the judge said.
On Friday Fuhry said, if convicted, Griefenstein could face between 3 and 11 years in prison and up to a $20,000 fine, as well as restitution and court costs.
“Although a prison sentence is not mandatory, it is presumed,” Fuhry said.
The addition of the firearm specification mandates a 3-year sentence on top of whatever any final sentence for the voluntary manslaughter charge constitutes. The prison sentence related to the firearm specification charge would run consecutive to any sentence related to the voluntary manslaughter charge, he said.
Fuhry then asked her a series of questions related to the case. Since December, she has lived on Vine Street in Eastlake. Prior to that, she lived in Thompson Township for six-and-a-half years. She lives alone and is retired, she told the judge.
Geauga County Public Defender Robert Umholtz said his client has never failed to appear for court and has no prior felonies or misdemeanors.
The judge asked her if she had children, of which she has three. One is estranged, but two remain in contact with her. He ordered her not to have contact with them.
Hockensmith said, with respect to the bond amount, he had a conversation with Umholtz prior to the arraignment.
Initially, the case was filed in Chardon Municipal Court and bound over to Common Pleas Court Nov. 4 last year.
“She posted 10 percent of the regular $15,000 bond, assuming it was returned once the case was dismissed,” Hockensmith said.
Originally, the state was going to make recommendation, given the severity of the case, for a $20,000 cash or surety bond, but the existing bond has not been returned, he added.
Fuhry replied, “So, what you are talking about is that this case was apparently charged, or in some case, related to one at the Municipal Court?”
Hockensmith replied in the affirmative.
But that municipal court case was not indicted and was dismissed last month, the judge continued.
“That is correct,” Hockensmith said.
Hockensmith told the judge he assumed the bond was returned given the dismissal of the municipal court case. So the prosecutor’s office sought the cash or surety bond, which was different than a regular bond.
A regular bond seeks a 10-percent payment, while a cash or surety bond requires payment in full, he added.
Umholtz next spoke.
He said he had no problem with the no-contact order, but asked the court to advise Griefenstein’s children to cease calling her.
“They are trying to make contact and are harassing her at this point,” he said.
Umholtz spoke in support of his client, saying she has had constant contact with the public defender’s office and is not a flight risk. He said he either wanted the court to impose a personal recognizance bond or reinstate the $15,000 regular bond set by the municipal court.
Fuhry then reinstated the $15,000 regular bond and ordered her not to either own, possess or use any firearm. He also ordered a DNA test, fingerprints and photographs at the Geauga County Safety Center.
“Although a DNA test was conducted and specified in the old case, this is a new case and we want to order another one,” he said.
In the March 6 issue of the Geauga County Maple Leaf, the case description notes a conversation between Griefenstein and a 9-1-1 dispatcher.
Rita told the dispatcher around 10:42 p.m. Oct. 11 that she shot her husband.
“He hit me with a pan. He’s on the kitchen floor. I think he’s dead,” she told the dispatcher, adding she had some lumps on her head because he allegedly hit her in the head numerous times with a pan.
She also said Peter had a history of getting physical with her.
During a press conference last October, Geauga County Sheriff Dan McClelland said the couple, who had been married for several years, reportedly had been arguing for some time throughout the evening.
“At some point, that argument turned physical,” the sheriff said in an Oct. 15 press conference. “The small caliber, .380 semi-automatic handgun was produced by Rita Greifenstein, a single shot was fired, striking the victim in the chest and he expired from those wounds there.”
The Geauga County Prosecutor’s Office, with assistance of the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, executed a search warrant and processed the scene.
Given the evidence at hand and her statements to authorities, she was arrested and charged with voluntary manslaughter. Geauga County Prosecutor Jim Flaiz said he indicated there was some evidence at the scene that corroborated her claim of self-defense.
“However, like any case, once the investigation is complete, this matter will, ultimately, be presented to the Geauga County grand jury and they will determine whether probable cause exists for a felony indictment to be filed,” Flaiz said last year. “And that presentation will not be made until we have a thorough investigation of all facts and circumstances in this case.”