BOWLING GREEN — A man charged in a hazing case that caused a Bowling Green State University student’s death was released on his own recognizance Thursday in Wood County Common Pleas Court after he was arrested under allegations he violated one of his bond conditions to not drink alcohol.
The defendant, Jacob Krinn, 20, of Delaware, Ohio, turned himself in Tuesday afternoon after his electronic monitor detected he had consumed alcohol and prompted a bench warrant last Friday.
Mr. Krinn and his Columbus-based attorney, Sam Shamansky, deny that he consumed alcohol. They asked in court Thursday that he be released on bond, offering to submit to a hair follicle test to prove he hadn’t consumed any alcohol, has complied with his bond conditions, and a bracelet malfunction occurred.
“It was just replaced about a week ago, and then, lo-and-behold, after six long months, it shows a positive,” Mr. Shamansky said of the bracelet’s detection.
After a half-hour delay to begin the hearing because of technical difficulty setting up Mr. Shamansky to appear virtually, Wood County Common Pleas Judge Joel Kuhlman granted bond to Mr. Krinn on the same conditions he was initially given when he was released on bond in May, while ordering an additional condition that Mr. Krinn “expeditiously” submit to the follicle test.
Mr. Shamansky said the follicle test will “definitively show that [Mr. Krinn] has been in full compliance with the terms and conditions of his release.”
An additional bond violation hearing will take place Nov. 18, the same day of Mr. Krinn’s scheduled pre-trial hearing, during which the test results can be presented.
Charges against Mr. Krinn, who sat motionless in court Thursday, include first-degree manslaughter and second-degree felonious assault, both of which could result in decade-plus terms if he is convicted.
Authorities say Mr. Krinn served as the “Big” — a term used in fraternities to represent a big brother/little brother relationship for incoming pledges — to Stone Foltz, a BGSU student who died in March after a fraternity-related hazing event at an off-campus apartment.
In another hearing Thursday, a co-defendant in the case, 21-year-old Aaron Lehane, of Loveland, Ohio, became the second defendant in the case to offer a guilty plea. Mr. Lehane pleaded guilty to an initial count of tampering with evidence that was amended to obstruction of justice, a first-degree misdemeanor, obstructing official business, eight counts of hazing, and one count of violation of underage alcohol laws.
With acceptance of the plea, Wood County Prosecutor Paul Dobson said the state will move to dismiss eight counts Mr. Lehane has been charged with and asked that sentencing be held after pre-trials of all co-defendants, which are scheduled to take place later this month into November.
“The state’s recommendation would be based upon the defendant’s continued cooperation in the prosecution of his co-defendants,” Mr. Dobson said.
Mr. Lehane could face a consecutive sentence of up to 480 days, and face $4,750 in fines. Sentencing will take place on Feb. 10 at 1:30 p.m.
Last month, another defendant in the case, Niall Sweeney, 21, of Erie, Pa., pleaded guilty to a number of charges as well.
Mr. Foltz’s parents, Shari and Cory Foltz, attended both hearings alongside attorney Rex Elliot Thursday. Mr. Elliot said he anticipates more defendants to plead guilty in the coming weeks based on the significant amount of evidence from the hazing event.
“Every time we have a plea, that translates into accountability and responsibility for the death of Stone Foltz,” he said. “Until we have accountability in this country for the kinds of serious injuries and deaths that are coming out of the hazing environment, we’re gonna have more injuries and deaths.
“The criminal process is one of the steps that are very important to the family,” he continued, “not just to make sure that there’s justice done for Stone, but also to send a message to every college kid out there that if you continue to haze, the criminal justice system is going to be knocking at your door.”
First Published October 21, 2021, 8:15 p.m.
