Credit: Montgomery County Jail
Credit: Montgomery County Jail
Jesse Samuel Redavide was shot and killed Nov. 14, 2017, at his brother’s residence in the 100 block of South Horton Street.
In September, the Second District Court of Appeals in Dayton overturned Irvin’s conviction for the murder and felonious assault charges after ruling he was entitled to a self-defense jury instruction.
During the first trial, Irvin admitted to the shooting, but claimed he acted in self-defense. He testified that early the morning of the shooting that when he drove to his friend Joseph Redavide’s home to get some food and drugs he was met at the door by his brother, Jesse Redavide, who reportedly appeared intoxicated used racial slurs against him before he “monkey dunked,” or slammed him to the ground, and hit him in the head with a rifle, according to court documents.
Irvin testified he got to his feet and and shot Jesse Redavide because he feared for his life. Additional testimony from Irvin and witnesses indicated that Irvin was standing beside an open door. Although Irvin did not say whether the rifle was pointed at him, witnesses said Redavide’s hands were in the air when he was shot, court records stated.
In 2019, Ohio law changed to shift the burden of proof of self-defense “from the defendant to the state to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused did not use force in self-defense.” A subsequent decision stated the amended version of the self-defense statute applied to trials held on or after the amendment’s effective date even of the offenses happened earlier.
“We conclude that Irvin was entitled to a self-defense jury instruction and that the trial court’s erroneous instruction placing the burden of proof on him was not harmless,” the ruling stated.
The appeals court affirmed Irvin’s conviction for tampering with evidence.
After the shooting, Irvin fled in his SUV and threw the gun into bushes on Linden Avenue and drove to a relative’s house. However, he got the wrong house and was out of gas so he walked the rest of the way to his stepmother’s house, where he was arrested later that day, according to court documents.
Judge Steven Dankof is presiding over Irvin’s retrial, which began Monday.
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