PIKE COUNTY, Ohio — Jake and Angela Wagner must have a new sentencing hearing, a Friday appeals court ruling says.
The appeals court ruled Friday that both Jake and Angela Wagner, both of whom are guilty of several counts of aggravated murder, will each get a new sentencing hearing.
Angela and her son, Jake, have pleaded guilty to the murders of eight members of the Rhoden and Gilley families in 2016 in Pike County.
Found dead that day were 40-year-old Christopher Rhoden Sr., 37-year-old Dana Rhoden, 20-year-old Hannah "Hazel" Gilley, 16-year-old Christopher Rhoden Jr., 20-year-old Clarence "Frankie" Rhoden, 37-year-old Gary Rhoden, 19-year-old Hanna May Rhoden, and 44-year-old Kenneth Rhoden.
Angela's other son, George Wagner IV, was found guilty of the murders by a jury after a three-month trial in 2022. Following that conviction, George was sentenced to eight consecutive life terms in addition to over 120 years in prison for firearm specifications attached to the charges and other charges he faced.
George and Jake's father — and Angela's husband — George "Billy" Wagner III is still awaiting trial, facing the same charges as each of the other members of his family.
The decision to sentence Billy's alleged co-conspirators before his trial was not a popular one, because of the intricacies of the plea deals struck with the prosecution.
In the deal with Angela, prosecutors agreed to drop eight charges of aggravated murder in exchange for the plea, and recommended she serve 30 years in prison with no early release.
Jake's guilty plea is more complicated: he pleaded guilty to 18 counts, including aggravated murder. Prosecutors agreed to dismiss the possibility of the death penalty for all members of the Wagner family in exchange for Jake's testimony at any trials.
In January of 2025, Judge Jonathan Hein decided to ignore the prosecution's plea deal with Jake Wagner and instead provide him an opportunity for parole. Hein followed Angela's plea deal, but she will also have a new sentencing hearing, according to the appeals court decision.
The plea deal Jake entered into with the prosecution was for eight life sentences without the possibility of parole. Instead, Hein sentenced him to eight life sentences with the possibility of parole after 32 years.
"How do I resolve what looks to me as some sort of gender bias?" said Hein.
He pointed to Angela receiving a "good deal" for her cooperation with the prosecution, while Jake — who also cooperated and testified during his brother George's trial — was meant to be sentenced the same as George.
"How do I resolve the good deal your mom got, especially since she could have stopped the whole thing dead in its tracks?" said Hein.
In January, an appeals court ruled in favor of prosecutors' appeal, and reversed Hein's decision to drop the death penalty before Billy Wagner's trial begins. Billy's attorneys are appealing that decision to the Ohio State Supreme Court.
It's now unclear how exactly sentencing Jake and Angela, while dismissing the death penalty against Billy before trial will impact the proceedings of that trial.
Further complicating the case, Hein has also ruled to move Billy's upcoming trial out of Pike County. On November 25, Hein ruled there has been too much public and media interest in the case to seat an impartial jury.
"The court finds that the intense scope of media coverage in this case — and other closely related cases — was so pervasive that prejudice is presumed," reads Hein's decision. "The small population of Pike County and the intense media coverage leads the court to conclude that no jury could truthfully answer that they have no prior knowledge of the horrendous factors of this case."
So far, where exactly Billy will face trial has not yet been announced.
