(MARIETTA, Ohio)—Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine and Washington County Sheriff Larry R. Mincks Sr. announced today that former deputy Mitchell Ruble has been found guilty of aggravated murder for the 1981 death of Washington County Sheriff's Deputy Lt. Ray "Joe" Clark.
A Washington County jury delivered the verdict today. A previous trial against Ruble, 65, ended with a hung jury in October.
“We believe this was one of the oldest cold cases of its kind -- involving the murder of a law enforcement officer -- that’s ever been successfully prosecuted,” Attorney General DeWine said. “We commend the efforts of all those who worked to bring justice in this case. We won’t give up on cold case homicides.”
“I appreciate the efforts put forth by the Attorney General’s Office in helping us with the prosecution and the technical assistance from BCI,” said Sheriff Mincks. “It’s a great day for law enforcement. This was a long time coming.”
Lt. Clark was shot to death at his Marietta home on Dodd's Run Road on Feb. 7, 1981. Investigators determined that Ruble waited outside Lt. Clark’s home and shot him with a shotgun through the kitchen window.
Ruble had worked as a deputy with the Washington County Sheriff's Office until December 1979, when Lt. Clark terminated his employment due to the use of excessive force while on duty.
Special prosecutors with Attorney General DeWine's Special Prosecutions Section prosecuted the case. The Washington County Sheriff’s Cold Case Unit and Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation investigated the case.
The case was part of the Ohio Attorney General’s Ohio Unsolved Homicides initiative.
Ruble is currently in the Washington County Jail. Sentencing is set for April 28, 2016.
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Images
Mitchell Ruble
Washington County Sheriff's Deputy Lt. Ray "Joe" Clark
Media Contacts
Dan Tierney: 614-466-3840
Kate Hanson: 614-466-3840