© 1998-2015 The Justice Institute -- (Justice Denied is a trade name of The Justice Institute)

© 1998-2023 The Justice Institute -- (Justice Denied is a trade name of The Justice Institute)

John Spirko

Ohio Governor Ted Strickland granted a sixth stay of execution to John Spirko, so potentially exonerating evidence can be tested. His new execution date is September 18, 2007. (Click here to read Toledo Blade story)

Click here to read John Spirko's story published in Justice Denied Issue 27. Even though there is no physical, scientific or forensic evidence linking John Spirko to the 1982 abduction and murder of Betty Jane Mottinger and he has not confessed to the crime, to date he has lost every court appeal. In May 2004 federal appeals court Judge Ronald Lee Coleman described his 1984 conviction as resting on a "foundation of sand," and that the "complete absence" of physical evidence raised "considerable doubt" that he had been lawfully convicted.

The Dayton Daily News produced a video of its editorial of November 1, 2005 that outlines the case to stop Spirko's execution. Click here to play the 3 min. 30 second video on your computer using the Real Media Player. Or, Click to play the video using the Windows Media Player.

Read an affidavit by an investigator for the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney for Wyandot County, Ohio, that relates detailed information provided by John Edwin Willier about the kidnapping and murder of Betty Jane Mottinger, and that conspicuously does not include any mention that John Spirko had any involvement in the crime.

In the absence of court intervention, John Spirko's fate is in the hands of Ohio Governor Ted Strickland. Gov. Strickland’s executive power enables him to give John Spirko relief ranging from a full and complete pardon to commuting his sentence to life in prison. Contact information for Governor Strickland is on John Spirko's website  http://www.johnspirko.com