Earlier this week a judge dismissed a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of an Ohio State student who was killed by Brian Golsby in February 2017. The student was Reagan Tokes. She was kidnapped, raped, and then fatally shot by Golsby, a convicted sex offender. Since the incident, Golsby has been convicted and will serve life in prison for the murder. Prior to the incident, he had been released from prison for three months and “was wearing a GPS ankle monitor while under the watch of the state’s Adult Parole Authority.”
Earlier this week a judge dismissed a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of an Ohio State student who was killed by Brian Golsby in February 2017. The student was Reagan Tokes. She was kidnapped, raped, and then fatally shot by Golsby, a convicted sex offender. Since the incident, Golsby has been convicted and will serve life in prison for the murder. Prior to the incident, he had been released from prison for three months and “was wearing a GPS ankle monitor while under the watch of the state’s Adult Parole Authority.”
Despite the ankle monitor, investigations revealed that Golsby, along with many other ex-offenders aren’t often closely watched after being released from prison. Because of this, the Tokes family filed a lawsuit against the “Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction (ODRC) in May arguing that the department and its contractors, like the residential program that housed Golsby after his release, were negligent.”
Attorneys for the family argued that the “state and its contractors knew that Golsby was at high-risk to re-offend but failed to take the proper steps to ensure the safety of others.” Attorneys for the ODRC pushed back and argued that the “department was immune from being sued and had no special duty to protect Reagan Tokes.”
Judge Patrick McGrath agreed with the ODRC and ruled against the family’s lawsuit, saying, “The court does not find the Estate has pleaded any facts that establish the first requirement of any negligence action.” He added:
“Moreover, the court’s conclusion that DRC owed no duty in this instance is wholly consistent with the general principle that, absent a special relationship, there is no duty to control the conduct of a third person as to prevent the third person from causing physical harm to another…Based on the Estate’s allegation that Golsby was on post-release control when he committed the crimes against Reagan Tokes, it does not appear to the court that DRC had a duty to confine Golsby, absent a hearing regarding alleged violations of post-release control sanctions. See, e.g., R.C. 2967.28(0)(3) (effective September 13, 2016) (providing that the parole board or, pursuant to an agreement under R.C. 2967.29, a court may hold a hearing on any alleged violation by a release of a post-release control sanction or any conditions described in R.C. 2967.131 (A) that are imposed upon the release).”
But what happened? Well, with only three months away from graduating from The Ohio State Univerity, Tokes was “abducted from the Short North area, forced to retrieve money from a Chase ATM in German Village, and later raped before being fatally shot in the head in the Scioto Grove Metro Park.”
Prior to the fatal incident, Golsby was slapped with sanctions “while under the watch of the state for going missing from this residential housing center with The Exit Program and failing to charge his GPS ankle monitor.” In fact, he was supposed to “have a hearing with the Adult Parole Authority but was arrested for Tokes’ murder before that took place.” Additionally, in the days and weeks leading up to Tokes’ death, Golsby “committed a string of robberies.”
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Judge dismisses wrongful death lawsuit against state filed by Reagan Tokes’ family
Judge tosses out wrongful death lawsuit filed by Reagan Tokes’ family against the state
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