Man, 23, in custody after 19-year-old woman killed in southwest Columbus domestic incident
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — A 19-year-old pregnant woman is dead and a 23-year-old man is in custody after a domestic incident Sunday morning in southwest Columbus.
Columbus police said a text was received by 911 about a domestic violence attack at 7:30 a.m. near the 4600 block of Parkwick Drive. According to court records, the text was from a woman stating that her sister-in-law, Brooke Devinney, was being assaulted by Devinney’s boyfriend, who the texter identified as Devon Blair.
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At that scene, officers found Devinney inside the home. She was taken to a hospital in critical condition, but pronounced dead at 8:45 a.m., police said. She was pregnant at the time of her death, with the unborn child being pronounced dead at 8:49 a.m.
“Ms. Devinney was pregnant at the time,” Columbus Police Sgt. Joe Albert said. “This morning, when she was pronounced deceased, found out that she was pregnant, so there might be additional charges stemming from that.”
Police said that when officers arrived, the suspect, identified by police as Blair, was seen leaving the home. Officers chased him on foot but lost him. He was taken into custody just before 12:30 p.m. near Cottrell Drive and Cottrell Court.
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“Thanks to the alertness and just the overall sheer determination of locating Mr. Blair, one of the patrol officers who was the officer to perform CPR on Ms. Devinney located Mr. Blair about two and a half, little less than two miles away from where the incident took place,” Albert said.
Blair was arrested in December 2023 and charged with felonious assault, assault, domestic violence, and strangulation or suffocation, according to Franklin County Municipal Court records.
According to court records, Blair pleaded guilty to one domestic violence charge and one assault charge on May 16, resulting in strangulation and felonious assault charges being dropped. Court records show he was out on bond awaiting sentencing, but had that bond revoked on May 31 for violating the conditions of the bond.
Devinney also filed a report against Blair on June 13, the result of an incident where the couple was driving the day before when Blair allegedly punched and threatened Devinney, according to court documents. A warrant for his arrest was filed after the report was made. During this report, Devinney told police that she had been previously victimized by Blair, including that he “stabbed her in the past.”
“We see it quite frequently where an offender will re-offend on domestic violence, whether with the same victim or with another victim later on in their life,” Albert said.
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Blair is being held at Franklin County Jail. According to the Franklin County Sheriff’s website, Blair is facing a murder charge for this incident as well as multiple assault and domestic violence charges from the incident on June 12. He is scheduled to appear in Franklin County Municipal Court on Monday.
“(Domestic violence is) an issue that we’re, you know, working with community partners, trying to, but we need cooperation from victims,” Albert said. “I know, I know it’s hard to reach out and, you know, believe that you are a victim. Some people don’t believe they are victims of domestic violence, but this is a tragic ending to a very volatile relationship, it appears.”
If you or a loved one is experiencing domestic violence, visit LSS Choices or call 614-224-4663 (HOME), or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233, text BEGIN to 88788, or click here.
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