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LISBON -- Jeno L. Wall, the man sentenced to prison for the rest of his life for killing Robert E. "Hubba" Herron on Sept. 9, 2024 in Wellsville, recently lost his appeal, with the appellate court finding his claims of error lacked merit.
The Seventh District Court of Appeals ruled that sufficient evidence supported his convictions for aggravated murder and intimidation of a witness.
"Witnesses testified at trial that (Wall) became increasingly agitated as he repeatedly searched for the victim, struck the victim with a gun when he found him, and shot the victim in the back while the victim was kneeling. Minutes after shooting the victim in front of witnesses, (Wall) brandished his gun to one of the witnesses and threatened that the witness would be next if he said anything," the court ruling said.
Assignments of error noted for consideration when the appeal was filed last year included: the defendant's conviction was against the manifest weight of the evidence; the trial court erred when it denied the defense motion for acquittal; the trial court erred in overruling the defense motion to suppress a photo lineup; and there was not a legal sufficiency of the evidence.
The appellate court addressed each error, first noting that while eyewitness James "Jimmy" Howell's identification of Wall through a photo lineup was unduly suggestive, it was still reliable under the totality of the circumstances.
The challenge regarding a detective's testimony regarding cell phones was found without merit, with the court writing that Detective Dan Haueter testified regarding his personal knowledge based on his use of the programs for extracting data from cell phones, not as an expert.
As for the conviction being against the manifest weight of the evidence, the court ruled that both the aggravated murder and intimidation of a witness convictions were supported by the evidence. The judgment entry said there was no evidence of cumulative error and sufficient evidence existed even if the trial court erred as Wall tried to claim.
Wall, 35, formerly of Steubenville, claimed his innocence throughout the trial process, even after the jury found him guilty of all the charges for aggravated murder, murder, firearm specifications and intimidation of an attorney, victim or witness in a criminal case.
Columbiana County Common Pleas Court Judge Megan Bickerton followed the recommendation of the prosecution and sentenced Wall to life in prison without the possibility of parole for aggravated murder (and the merged murder count), an additional mandatory three years for the firearm specification and an additional three years for intimidation of an attorney, victim or witness in a criminal case, a third-degree felony.
He had been accused of hitting and shooting Herron, 30, of East Liverpool, to death at a property on 10th Street in Wellsville. Two eyewitnesses testified to being there when he hit him and fired a single gunshot. The intimidation charge stemmed from Wall threatening Howell, who was an eyewitness to the shooting.