Warden opposes Danny Lee Hill’s bid to pause his federal appeal

CINCINNATI, Ohio - The warden of a state prison is arguing against an attempt to temporarily halt a federal appeal by the man convicted of killing a Warren Boy Scout forty years ago.

Tim Shoop, warden at the Chillicothe Correctional Institution, has filed an objection to a request from Danny Lee Hill, who is currently appealing his 1986 conviction. Hill wants the court to pause his federal case so he can take a new legal claim back to the state court system first.

Hill’s underlying federal appeal is already focused on challenging the reliability of bite-mark evidence used to convict him in the 1985 murder of 12-year-old Raymond Fife in Warren.

The new claim prompting his request for a pause is based on a newly obtained sworn statement from a woman named Terri Shellman. Hill’s attorneys claim Shellman’s statement shows a key witness at the original trial lied, and that state officials kept evidence that would have helped the defense from being presented.

 The warden argues that the delay should not be granted because the new claim is not likely to succeed. Shoop’s opposition focuses on two main points: timing and the nature of the new evidence.

First, the warden contends that Hill’s legal team waited too long to find the new information. The warden points out that Shellman was known to Hill’s original defense team decades ago because another witness mentioned her during the trial. Shoop argues that the current defense team obtained the new statement simply by asking Shellman questions, an action that could have been taken by the inmate’s first lawyers.

Second, the warden asserts that Shellman’s statement is not actual proof of innocence. Shoop’s attorneys argue the new statement is only intended to undermine the credibility of a witness from the 1986 trial, which is not enough to overturn the conviction.

The opposition also notes that Hill’s presence near the crime scene was supported by testimony from other witnesses at the original trial, Matthew Hunter, Darren Ball, and Troy Cree.

The warden is asking the federal court to deny Hill’s request to pause the appeal.

The Ohio Supreme Court is currently considering one of Hill’s many appeals filed over the years.