BATAVIA, Ohio — The man charged with murdering a Clermont County deputy in February could be changing his not-guilty plea.
Wade Winn, charged with fatally shooting Deputy Bill Brewer and wounding Lt. Nick DeRose, is scheduled for another plea hearing at 1 p.m. Monday in Clermont County Court of Common Pleas, according to releases from the court and prosecutor Thursday. Clermont County Prosecutor D. Vincent Faris has scheduled a news conference after the hearing.
Among the possibilities, Winn could change his plea to guilty if the prosecutor takes the death penalty off the table. Clermont County Chief Criminal Prosecutor Darren Miller announced after the shooting that the state intended to seek the death penalty for Winn.
Attorneys for both sides have been under a gag order from Judge Anthony Brock. Brock is scheduled to preside at Monday's hearing.
The clerk's office told WCPO Thursday that this doesn't necessarily mean that Winn will change his plea, and that having a second plea can be common when cases evolve and attorneys know more about how the trial will shape up.
Winn is scheduled for trial before Brock on March 5, 2020.
Winn, 23, pleaded not guilty to two counts of aggravated murder and 12 counts of attempted aggravated murder in the Feb. 2 shooting at the Pierce Township apartment complex where he lived.
Winn's defense attorney argued serious mental health issues had been a contributing factor.
If Winn is convicted on the aggravated murder charges, he faces a potential sentence of death, life in prison without parole, life with parole eligibility after 25 years, or life with parole eligibility after 30 years.
Police said Winn barricaded himself in his apartment and faked his own suicide, then shot the deputies through a wall when they came to check on him during a 12-hour standoff.
The incident began when Winn called police to report a burglary in his apartment. When they arrived, however, he refused to leave and occasionally fired shots from his apartment.
The grand jury indictment include attempted murder charges for endangering the lives of six other deputies: Dep. Daniel Spears, Dep. Michael Ross, Detective Nicholas Crouch, Dep. Douglas Scott and Sgt. Michael White.
It also charged him with six counts of purposefully attempting to kill law enforcement officers in particular, which is a separate offense in Ohio.
