Ohio Supreme Court overturns death penalty for man convicted of killing Kent State student
Updated Dec 17, 2020;
KENT, Ohio – The Ohio Supreme Court on Thursday overturned the death sentence of a Ravenna man convicted of fatally shooting a Kent State University student during a February 2016 robbery.
The court upheld the convictions of 23-year-old Damantae Graham, but found the death penalty to be “disproportionate and excessive” due to other factors including Graham’s young age, background, mental health and substance abuse.
Graham had been found guilty in Portage County Court of Common Pleas of aggravated murder, aggravated robbery, aggravated burglary and kidnapping in connection with the death of Nicholas Massa, who was at another man’s apartment in Kent on Feb. 7, 2016 – Super Bowl Sunday – during a robbery.