Prosecutor to pursue more charges against convicted Ashland County man

Shawn Grate, center, sits between his attorneys Robert, left, and Rolf Whitney before Judge Ronald P. Forsthoefel during a trial in Ashland, Ohio, May 7. Grate was convicted Monday in the slayings of two women whose bodies were found underneath piles of clothes in what was thought to be a vacant Ohio home.
Shawn Grate, center, sits between his attorneys Robert, left, and Rolf Whitney before Judge Ronald P. Forsthoefel during a trial in Ashland, Ohio, May 7. Grate was convicted Monday in the slayings of two women whose bodies were found underneath piles of clothes in what was thought to be a vacant Ohio home. Tom E. Puskar — The Times Gazette via AP

By The Associated Press

MANSFIELD >> A county prosecutor in Ohio says he’ll pursue charges against a man recently convicted of killing two women for the slayings of two more women.

The Mansfield News Journal reports Richland County Prosecutor Gary Bishop said he followed 41-year-old Shawn Grate’s trial in Ashland County. Grate was convicted this month of aggravated murder for the 2016 strangulation deaths of 43-year-old Stacey Stanley and 29-year-old Elizabeth Griffith.

A jury has recommended to a judge that he sentence Grate to death June 1.

Bishop’s predecessor said Grate confessed after his September 2016 arrest to killing Candice Cunningham at a vacant Richland County home. Her body was found in a nearby ravine.

The newspaper reports Grate has been linked to the 2015 slaying of Rebekah Leicy. Her body was found in Ashland County.

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