New judge to hear Ohio highway slaying case

LEBANON, Ohio (AP) — A new judge has been assigned to hear the case of an Illinois man charged with killing a Kentucky woman found dead in a vehicle in southwest Ohio.

The Hamilton-Middletown Journal-News reports (http://bit.ly/1GAINny ) Judge Joseph Kirby will now hear the case of 41-year-old Terry Froman of Brookport, Illinois.

Kirby will replace Judge Robert Peeler, who recused himself last week. Prosecutors had requested his removal because Peeler’s nephew is the prosecutor handling the related charges against Froman in Kentucky. Prosecutors said the connection could lead the defense to argue bias in later appeals if Froman is convicted.

Froman has pleaded not guilty to charges alleging he killed his estranged girlfriend’s 17-year-old son in Kentucky, then kidnapped and killed her before being arrested Sept. 12 on Interstate 75 north of Cincinnati.

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