Putnam County cell sought for Richey

As the decision whether to retry Kenny Richey is to be announced tomorrow in Putnam County, his attorney filed a motion yesterday in federal court to have Richey moved to the Putnam County jail.

The motion by Ken Parsigian of Goodwin Procter in Boston, filed in Cleveland's U.S. District Court, was the latest salvo in a sparring match between the Richey camp and the state since the overturning of Richey's arson conviction in January was affirmed June 3.

"It's a lot of posturing; it's much to do about nothing," said Jim Canepa, chief deputy of the attorney general's criminal division. "At the end of the day, it doesn't matter where [Richey] is as long as he's incarcerated."

But Mr. Parsigian, in his motion, argued that once Richey's conviction was overturned and the state was given 90 days to retry or release him, he no longer qualified as a death-row prisoner and should be moved to Putnam County. "Even if you could bring a new charge for murder, it would be just that - a charge - and could not serve as a basis for keeping him on death row," Mr. Parsigian wrote in a letter to Mr. Canepa's office yesterday.

Mr. Canepa said the situation will become clearer tomorrow when Putnam County Prosecutor Gary Lammers will announce his decision whether to retry the 41-year-old Richey for the 1986 arson death of 2-year-old Cynthia Collins of Columbus Grove, Ohio.

Tomorrow is the 19th anniversary of Cynthia's death in an apartment fire Putnam County prosecutors said Richey set in attempt to kill his former girlfriend and her lover, who lived below Cynthia and her mother, Hope Collins.

Over the years, Richey's attorneys and reporters have uncovered numerous questionable issues in the case. The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals' deci-sion to overturn his conviction, however, was based on a violation of his constitutional rights.

Mr. Lammers declined to be interviewed yesterday. A spokesman said Mr. Lammers would release a written statement tomorrow afternoon.

Richey, whose mother is Scottish, spent his first 18 years in Scotland, and the case has been widely publicized in Britain for years. Prime Minister Tony Blair has been involved as has the Vatican. Amnesty International has called it one of its most important death penalty cases.

In an interview last week, Mr. Lammers, who became prosecutor in January, said he would ignore the fuss.

"It's pretty amazing that it has as far-reaching [impact] that it apparently has, but I'm not going to get mixed up in that. I'm going to interview witnesses and look at the scientific evidence to make my best call in this case, whether it's an international story or petty theft. All cases are important to those who they affect," he said.

Mr. Canepa said he believes Mr. Lammers is properly handling the announcement.

"I think it makes a lot of sense," he said. "If he decides not to retry him, he'll include those decisions in his release. If he decides to retry him, it's not fair to talk about it. He'll be in a trial strategy [mode] at that point."

Should Mr. Lammers opt for retrial, Mr. Canepa said it would pave the way for moving Richey to the county jail.

Two issues then emerge.

"Which court sets bail, and can Richey make bail," Mr. Canepa said.

Mr. Parsigian and the state also have been sparring over the 90-day deadline, which expires Sept. 1. He said the state has to begin the trial by then or seek a federally mandated extension. The state has said it only needs to begin the trial process.

"If there's a dispute, it will be resolved by the courts," Kim Norris, a spokesman for the attorney general's office, said last week.

Should Mr. Lammers pass on returning Richey to court, he could sign documents that would lead to Richey's release in about a week, according to Andrea Dean, an Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction spokesman.

"Once we receive the paperwork, we would start the process," Ms. Dean said.

Typically, according to Ms. Dean, it takes two to four working days to receive the paperwork and 24 hours for the prison system to complete its process before releasing an inmate.

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