Henthorn verdict: Guilty on 5 of 9 counts, acquitted of attempted murder

A 49-year-old Mansfield man was found guilty Friday night on five of nine counts but was acquitted of attempted murder.

An eight-man, four-woman jury deliberated for nearly three hours in reaching a verdict in the case of Chad Henthorn.

Jurors found Henthorn guilty of a single count of kidnapping and two counts of felonious assault, along with two counts of tampering with evidence.

In addition to being found not guilty of attempted murder, Henthorn was acquitted on another kidnapping charge and two counts of felonious assault.

The brutal beating, which was recorded on a security camera, happened May 30 in a garage in the 1200 block of Walker Street.

A 29-year-old man testified earlier Friday he sustained three skull fractures, a broken collarbone, brain bleed and a broken finger. He was in the hospital for five days.

Physically, the man said he still has trouble with memory and seeing from his left eye.

There also are emotional wounds.

"I'm a lot more on edge," the victim said. "I've tried to kill myself three times."

Richland County Assistant Prosecutor Chris Brown tried the case with Prosecutor Jodie Schumacher.

Assistant prosecutor surprised by verdict

"As always, we are grateful to the jurors for their service and thank them for taking the time to dedicate and come to a sober decision," Brown said. "At the same time, if they believed that he was complicit in some of those felonious assaults, in my opinion, he was complicit in the attempted murder.

"In that regard, I am surprised."

The tampering with evidence counts related to destroying the victim's cellphone and cleaning up the crime scene.

Defense attorney Josh Brown represented Henthorn, who will be sentenced at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday by Common Pleas Judge Phil Naumoff.

"It was a tough case, but I respect the jury," Josh Brown said. "We've got a great system, and I respect the decision."

He added he was particularly satisfied his client was found not guilty of attempted murder.

"You can't predict what 12 people are going to do, but they usually get it right," the defense attorney said.

Codefendant Robert Virgili was sentenced April 29 to 26 years in prison for his role. He pleaded guilty to 10 counts, including attempted murder.

Virgili beat the victim with a heavy chain and a crowbar, along with punching and kicking him, and unsuccessfully tried to start a chainsaw.

Defendant did not assault victim but was charged with being complicit

While Henthorn did not appear to assault the man, he was accused of being complicit in the attack. He left the scene shortly after the assault started and closed a door, which the state maintains kept the victim from leaving initially.

Jurors found Henthorn guilty of kidnapping while committing a felonious assault but not guilty of kidnapping for the purpose of terrorizing.

Henthorn was found guilty of felonious assault while causing serious physical harm and the count involving the log chain but was not guilty of the counts involving the crowbar and the chainsaw.

At the beginning of his testimony, the 29-year-old talked about how he came to Mansfield. Originally from southeastern Ohio, he met a woman with Mansfield ties while in rehab for alcohol abuse.

He described a transient lifestyle during his time here. One weekend, he planned to stay in the offices of his place of employment. The man took one of the company's medical transport vehicles for what he said was a run to Taco Bell on May 27, three days before the beating.

"In my eyes, I wasn't stealing a vehicle," the witness said. "It was supposed to be a 15-minute trip."

Instead, he was charged with grand theft of a motor vehicle, a fourth-degree felony. The man said police knocked him out, leaving him with small skull fractures and three broken teeth. What led to the altercation did not come up during his testimony.

The witness said he woke up at OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital. He was released May 30 and said he received a Facebook message from "Old School," later identified as Virgili.

Virgili offered to pick him up under the guise of giving him work. The man agreed and arrived with Virgili at the garage in question.

Vicious attack recorded on security camera

As the victim was lighting a Black & Mild cigar, Virgili can be seen on the video striking him in the back of the head with a heavy chain.

Brown asked the man if Henthorn, who was present, helped him or told Virgili to stop.

"There was no reaction from Mr. Henthorn," the victim replied.

The man said someone yelled to shut the doors, and Henthorn can be seen closing a door as he leaves the scene.

"I'm not sure what's going on or why I'm being attacked," the victim said. "I was just looking to survive."

Virgili can be seen choking the man, then hitting him with a crowbar. The witness said he is 5-feet-7 and weighs 123 pounds. Virgili is considerably larger.

As Virgili holds the victim down, his right arm is coated with the man's blood.

Brown asked the victim about Virgili's demeanor.

"He was angry and animalistic," the man replied. "He says that I'm a pedophile, and he's the devil and he's going to get me."

The witness said he has never harmed a child. During a break in testimony, Brown told the News Journal the victim has never faced such charges.

Hunching over at one point, Virgili appeared to tire.

Victim thought he was going to die

"I thought I was going to die, that nobody was going to know," the victim said, adding he didn't tell anyone he was going to the location.

Virgili is seen stalking around the garage, while the victim lies on the concrete floor.

Later, Virgili tied the man's hands to his left ankle with a smaller chain. Another man, who was not identified, entered the garage and unchained the victim, whose head and face were covered in blood.

The victim said he was told to walk to a car. Henthorn returned to the garage, while Virgili was temporarily gone. Henthorn can be seen destroying the man's cellphone with a pipe wrench.

When the victim got outside, he said he tried to escape. He said "they" chased him down and tried forcibly to put him inside a car. He said Henthorn did not participate but also did not help.

While struggling, the man said his jacket slipped off and he made another escape attempt. He found a man who was mowing his lawn and asked him to call 911.

During a contentious cross-examination, defense attorney Josh Brown attacked the man's criminal record, which is fair game in a trial because it speaks to credibility.

On Wednesday, the witness was sentenced to nine months in prison for grand theft of a motor vehicle. He is housed at the county jail and said he was given clothes for his court appearance by the prosecutor's office.

Attorney Brown said he would not make the victim watch the video again, but he did question him about it.

"My client never touched you, did he?" the defense attorney asked.

The victim said he could not recall.

"I do believe we still found justice for our victim because we were able to convict Chad Henthorn for the brutal assault," Chris Brown said. "To me, it's still very much a victory."

mcaudill@gannett.com

419-521-7219

X: @MarkCau32059251

This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Trial in torture case results in split verdict in common pleas court