A Rudolph man sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his wife has had an appeal denied.
Rodney Downard, 55, is incarcerated in the Marion Correctional Institution after being sentenced in 2001 for life in prison for the murder of his wife.
The couple’s children found the body in their Rudolph home.
On Jan. 12, 2005, Downard called 911 and reported his wife had been stabbed. He told dispatch that the only people in the house other than himself were his wife and their three children, all under the age of 10.
Officers responded and found LuAnn Downard laying on her back in bed with a knife in her chest, according to court documents.
During an interview conducted at the Wood County Sheriff’s Office, Downard said he had accidentally stabbed his wife when he tripped and fell on top of her while standing by the bed with a knife.
He eventually admitted he intentionally stabbed her after he stood over her while she slept and considered whether to kill her, according to court documents.
A jury in September 2005 returned a guilty verdict and Wood County Common Pleas Judge Robert Pollex imposed the life sentence with a chance for parole after 20 years.
Downard lost an appeal in 2007 after the 6th District Court of Appeals ruled he was not prejudiced or prevented from having a fair trial. The appeals court affirmed the sentence.
Downard filed on Jan. 31 a request for documents that he said would aid him in a new trial.
The appeals court denied the request, and in its ruling stated all documents requested would likely have been available prior to or at the time of trial and they did not appear to any relevance to Downard’s plan to file a motion for a new trial.
Downard in March appealed this decision. In its decision filed this week, the district court ruled it had been filed eight days after the 30-day window as required by Ohio Revised Code and ordered the appeal dismissed.
His first parole board hearing is scheduled for November 2024 with a parole eligibility on Jan. 8, 2025.
