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Suspect in family of 8 slayings seeks solitary confinement

Posted at 10:54 AM, Mar 25, 2019
and last updated 2019-03-25 10:54:05-04

WAVERLY, Ohio (AP) — One of four family members charged with killing eight people from another family in Ohio wants solitary confinement in the jail where he's being held.

Twenty-seven-year-old George Wagner IV, his parents and brother have pleaded not guilty to aggravated murder charges in the 2016 shootings of seven adults and a teenage boy from the Rhoden family in Pike County.

Wagner's attorneys told a Pike County judge last week he wants solitary confinement to read the Bible and "do the things that he likes to do."

Wagner is in Ross County's jail. The judge and prosecutor agree that where to place Wagner there is up to that county's sheriff.

A message was left for the sheriff Monday.

Authorities have suggested a child custody dispute as a possible motive in the slayings.