Donna Roberts is a woman from Ohio who was sentenced to death for the murder of her husband.
Donna Roberts decided she no longer wanted to be with her husband so she would hire a former inmate, Nathaniel Jackson , to kill him
When Nathaniel Jackson got out of jail he would fatally shoot Robert Fingerhut
Police would learn that Nathaniel Jackson had been having an affair with Donna Roberts well before the murder would soon have enough evidence to charge the two
Donna Roberts would be convicted and sentenced to death. Nate Jackson would have the same fate
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Donna Roberts FAQ
Where is Donna Roberts now
Donna Roberts is currently incarcerated at the Ohio Reformatory for Women
Donna Roberts Appeal Denied
The Ohio Supreme Court has upheld the death sentence handed down to a woman convicted of plotting to murder her husband in Howland in2001.
The court affirmed the sentence of Donna Roberts, who along with her lover Nathaniel Jackson, were convicted of killing Robert Fingerhut in Howland Township.
Both were sentenced to death for scheming to kill Fingerhut so Roberts could collect more than $500,000 in life insurance proceeds.
Roberts is scheduled to be executed on August 12, 2020.
According to court records, Roberts was having an affair with Jackson before he was sent to prison for a separate offense.
Investigators say the two communicated while Jackson was in prison.
When Jackson was released on December 9, 2001, Roberts was waiting to pick him up.
wo days later, Robert Fingerhut was found dead on the kitchen floor of his home. He had been shot several times.
In addition to letters and phone records gathered as evidence, investigators say Roberts bought Jackson a mask and gloves to wear while committing the crime, even allowing him into the home where the murder occurred.
Roberts was convicted of aggravated murder with death penalty specifications, aggravated robbery, and aggravated burglary
In Tuesday’s ruling, the justices rejected Roberts’ claim that her sentence constituted cruel and unusual punishment.
This is the third time Roberts has appealed her death sentence to the Ohio Supreme Court.
The Court first sent Robert’s case back to the trial court after learning that the judge had allowed the prosecutor’s office to participate in drafting the judge’s sentencing opinion.
The court returned Roberts’ case to the trial court for a second time in 2013 after concluding that the trial court hadn’t considered potentially mitigating information Roberts gave at her first re-sentencing hearing.
The Supreme Court ordered the trial court to consider the entire record when deciding again whether the aggravating circumstances outweighed the mitigating factors beyond a reasonable doubt.
A new judge conducted the re-sentencing because the judge who originally heard Roberts’ case had died.
The new judge determined that death was the appropriate penalty in the case.
In her appeal, Roberts maintained that the new judge couldn’t properly consider all the evidence in the case because he wasn’t present for any of her trial and didn’t hear her statement firsthand.
In its latest ruling, the Supreme Court found that the trial court judge’s decision was proper because he reviewed a written transcript of the case.
The Ohio Supreme Court has already refused to reconsider its earlier decision to uphold Nathaniel Jackson’s sentence, which is scheduled to be carried out on July 15, 2020.
Donna Roberts Now
Number W055276
DOB 05/22/1944
Gender Female
Race White
Admission Date 06/26/2003
Institution Ohio Reformatory for Women
Status INCARCERATED
Donna Roberts News
A former Howland woman sentenced to death for her part in a plot to murder her husband has been granted a stay of execution.
The Ohio Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that carrying out the execution of Donna Roberts would be placed on hold until all state postconviction proceedings, including any appeals are exhausted
Attorneys for Roberts filed the motion to keep the state from carrying out her execution while she appeals her conviction and sentence for the 2001 murder of her husband.
Although the state set an August 12, 2020 execution date for Roberts, the name of the 76-year-old woman is not on the current Department of Correction and Rehabilitation execution schedule.
Roberts attorneys say the motion to stay the execution was file to “ensure no confusion”.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has been delaying death sentences in the state because pharmaceutical suppliers have been unwilling to provide drugs used for lethal injection.
Robert’s latest bid to overturn her death sentence is scheduled to be heard in July before the Ohio Eleventh District Court of Appeals.
According to prosecutors, Roberts plotted with another man, Nathaniel Jackson to kill Robert Fingerhut in Howland Township.
Both were sentenced to death for scheming to kill Fingerhut so Roberts could collect more than $500,000 in life insurance proceeds.
Prosecutors say Roberts was having an affair with Jackson before he was sent to prison for a separate offense.
Investigators say the two communicated while Jackson was in prison.
When Jackson was released on December 9, 2001, Roberts was waiting to pick him up.
Two days later, Robert Fingerhut was found dead on the kitchen floor of his home. He had been shot several times.
In addition to letters and phone records gathered as evidence, investigators say Roberts bought Jackson a mask and gloves to wear while committing the crime, even allowing him into the home where the murder occurred.
Roberts was convicted of aggravated murder with death penalty specifications, aggravated robbery, and aggravated burglary.
Roberts is the only woman on Ohio’s Death Row.
https://www.wfmj.com/story/42252338/howland-woman-seeks-stay-on-death-sentence-for-murdering-husband
