Toledo man sentenced to prison for fatally beating girlfriend
Jun. 24—Patrice Rivers might have survived if her boyfriend, Kevin Thomas, had called 911 after severely beating her a year ago, he admitted to detectives during an investigation.
Instead, Thomas bound the woman's wrists and ankles with wire and left her in the basement as he tried to clean up the crime scene in their Batavia Street home, assistant Lucas County prosecutor Dexter Phillips said during the man's plea hearing Thursday. Ms. Rivers was found dead in the basement by a family member on June 20, 2020.
Thomas, 54, of the 100 block of Batavia, entered an Alford plea — not admitting guilt, but conceding evidence sufficient for a conviction — to a lesser felony offense of involuntary manslaughter with a repeat violent offender specification for causing his 52-year-old girlfriend's death.
Lucas County Common Pleas Court Judge Lori Olender immediately sentenced him to an agreed-upon term of 13 to 18 1/2 years in prison.
"You've impacted a lot of lives and the hope is your sentence will not just be incarceration but that you will know and carry with you that you have taken somebody away from these people," Judge Olender said, referencing Ms. Rivers' family. "Really, no amount of sentence could ever repair what they've lost."
Prosecutors told the court evidence would have shown Thomas punched his girlfriend multiple times in the head and face during the altercation. Ms. Rivers was knocked unconscious and bled from her head, Mr. Phillips said.
Thomas restrained her in the home's basement and left to purchase cleaning supplies, according to the prosecutor. He returned and attempted to clean blood stains on the carpet in the living room, where the assault occurred.
When the cleaning efforts were unsuccessful, Thomas left the home again and Ms. Rivers never regained consciousness, Mr. Phillips said.
A relative found Ms. Rivers later that day. Based on an autopsy, the Lucas County Coroner's office ruled Aug. 27 her death was a homicide from a sudden violent assault.
Thomas was indicted by a Lucas County grand jury for murder, which was amended, and felonious assault with a repeat violent offender specification, which was dismissed Thursday. His previous convictions for violent offenses including aggravated burglary and felonious assault made him a repeat violent offender, according to prosecutors.
The lead detective and the victim's relatives both consented to the plea agreement, prosecutors said, and the defense agreed to the specified prison term. Thomas had faced a maximum of 26 1/2 years.
First Published June 24, 2021, 11:13am
