LEETONIA, Ohio - A jury has reached a verdict in the case of a man accused of murdering his ex-wife, who was a high school teacher in Leetonia.

The jury found William Long Jr. guilty of all charges against him, including murder, aggravated murder and discharge of a firearm on or near prohibited premises, all with firearm specifications.

Long was sentenced on Monday on three charges and will be imprisoned for life without parole for counts one and two, which merged. Counts one and two, according to court records, include aggravated murder and a firearm specification.

Additionally, Long will serve 14 years following his life sentence for count three, which is noted to be murder in court documentation.

Specifically, the court noted that sentences would be given consecutively, meaning Long will carry out his life sentence prior to an additional 14 years for count three.

According to the Ohio Revised Code, a life sentence equates to between 20 and 30 years imprisonment.

The charges stem from the shooting death of his ex-wife, Michelle Long.

William Long took the stand on Monday to defend himself before closing arguments and deliberations began in the afternoon.

William killed his ex-wife "execution style," fueled by hatred for her stemming from a contentious divorce.

Furthermore, the prosecution said a day before Michelle's death, William's appeal of rulings in the divorce was denied, which had awarded Michelle child support, alimony and a cash payment of $100,000.

During William's testimony, he told the court he did not hate his wife, but admitted that he did not cope with the divorce very well, turning to drinking, and in turn saying hurtful things about her.

William testified that he did not really feel this way about Michelle.

William went on to say that he was depressed and attempted suicide in April of 2023. When the defense asked William if he was allowed to have any guns in the house after the suicide attempt, he said no.

On the topic of losing the appeal, William said he didn't realize he lost the appeal until the weekend when he was at his son's house, claiming that he was not good with computers and never checked online court records in his life.

21 News will update this story with sentencing information once it is available. In the meantime, you can read up on previous testimony in this case in our related coverage below.

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