Pregnant woman shot dead after argument over playing with lasers in her yard
An Ohio man accused of gunning down a pregnant woman in her front yard after they got into an argument over a laser pointer has been indicted on murder charges and is being held on a $1m bond.
Tyrone Hunter, 26, was indicted this week on two counts of murder and several other felony counts in the death of 26-year-old Isis LeShay Roseman, according to Hamilton County Prosecutor Melissa Powers.
On 6 July, Roseman and her little brother were playing with a laser pointer in the front yard of their home in the Winton Hills neighbourhood when Mr Hunter approached them and they got into a verbal altercation.
Mr Hunter threatened to “shoot up” the house before getting in his car and driving off, according to authorities. He returned a short time later and allegedly opened fire, sending Roseman and her brother running inside.
She was struck at least once as a second round of shots were fired when they entered the home. Roseman, who was 16 to 17 weeks pregnant, prosecutors said, was transported to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center where she died from her injuries.
In her obituary, she was described as a “beautiful person both internally and externally” whose “smile and laugh would brighten up any room she entered. Isis was intelligent and a force to be reckoned with. She had the heart of a lion and was a born leader.”
At the time of the shooting, Mr Hunter was out on bond for two felony indictments from 2022 for felonious assault, improper discharge of a firearm and drug trafficking, prosecutors said.
Mr Hunter’s original bond was 10 per cent of $105,000, but it later was reduced to $10,000 in May 2022. He also was required to wear an ankle monitor.
His bond was revoked when he was arrested on a robbery charge, but prosecutors say the charge was “ignored” by a grand jury. His bond was reinstated at $10,000 and he no longer had to wear an ankle monitor.
“This is absurd,” Ms Powers said in a statement. “Criminals must be kept off the streets and remain accountable for their crimes. This guy took two lives by killing a pregnant victim while out on a $10,000 bond.”
Mr Hunter surrendered to police on 24 July and is being held at the Hamilton County Justice Center on a $1m bond.
At Mr Hunter’s arraignment on Tuesday, his defence attorney, Clyde Bennett, told Cincinnati ABC affiliate WCPO-TV that he had no involvement in Roseman’s death.
“He told me that he wasn’t involved, he wasn’t there, and he didn’t do it,” Bennett said. “It’s not up to him to explain what happened, it’s up to the state of Ohio to explain what happened and also to prove what happened.”
If convicted on all charges, Mr Hunter faces a maximum possible sentence of life in prison with parole eligibility after 24 years.
