Man sentenced in Kettering insurance agent’s murder

Credit: Montgomery County Jail

Credit: Montgomery County Jail

A man was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison Tuesday in the death of a Kettering insurance agent.

Joshua Dehart, 38, was sentenced on a charge of aggravated murder and aggravated burglary after appearing in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court, according to the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office. Dehart was convicted of killing 74-year-old Barton Wilson in March at Wilson’s office on Wilmington Pike in Kettering.

“Kettering officers identified the defendant as the person who committed the fatal attack through the use of witness statements, video surveillance and other physical evidence,” the prosecutor’s office said. “The defendant worked as a handyman at the victim’s rental properties.”

The Montgomery County Coroner’s Office ruled that Wilson died from blunt force trauma to the back of the head.

According to court documents, Dehart was due in court today for a final pre-trial hearing. A jury trial was scheduled to begin next week. However, prosecutor spokesman Greg Flannagan said the case was resolved in a plea with an agreed sentence.

The plea agreement was reached after the defense for Dehart asked a judge to bar evidence in the case arguing that Dehart was not given his Miranda rights before a second interview the day after he was told his rights before a first interview.

Judge Mary Huffman ruled that statements made by Dehart during both interviews could be used during a trial, saying that Dehart’s waiver of his rights did not go stale between the first and second interviews.

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