BUCYRUS–Robert Pinyerd was sentenced Tuesday in the Crawford County Common Pleas Court for the aggravated murder of Cynthia Jo Heath.

Haylee James, daughter of murder victim Cynthia Jo Heath, stood before Judge Sean Leuthold to make the victim impact statement for herself and her family. James was wearing a shirt similar to the shirt that her mother died in. A simple cross bracelet lay against the backdrop of the blood stains.

On the brink of tears, James told Pinyerd how his bad choices that day had affected her and her family:

James told Pinyerd (in part):

“You broke me. I suffer from PTSD, anxiety, and depression. I disassociate now. I struggle to get in my car and drive to work every day because I remember driving to her house that night. Sirens take me right back to that night. You didn’t just take my mom that night, you took me with her. You hurt her so badly that at the funeral home no one could say goodbye to her. You took her from all of us. We didn’t deserve this. Our mom didn’t deserve to have to fight for her life. Nothing will ever bring myself or my family back to normal. I don’t hate you, it does my heart no good to hate you. But I will always hate what you did. Just know today you’re getting what you deserve for taking a life. If you choose to be mad at anyone, just remember, you made your bed, and now you get to lie in it.”

Crawford County Prosecutor Matt Crall read a statement submitted by Heath’s estranged spouse, Roger Heath:

“You are a cowardly, disgusting, despicable sorry excuse of a human. You have robbed so many memories for an 11-year-old girl. You have left traumatic scars forever on our family. Our deepest wish is that as you leave the court room today that it is the last breath of free air you’ll ever take.”

Assistant Prosecutor Dan Stanley asked Judge Leuthold to impose the highest sentence for aggravated murder. “Robert Pinyerd should never get out of prison alive,” Stanley said.

Defense attorney Tom Nicholson told the court that while his client chose not to make a statement, he still asserts his innocence.
Judge Leuthold put several factors on the record before he passed sentence on Pinyerd:

“The defendant waited on the victim to come home from breakfast. He physically assaulted Ms. Heath in the face with either a fist or a gun. We don’t know which. It was a very painful and traumatizing experience. She did try to defend herself. Her left hand was fractured. her nose was broken. She lay there in the psychological pain of realizing she could not protect herself. She was shot three times in the head with a 45-caliber weapon. She suffered a violent, brutal, and painful death. And he murdered Ms. Heath in her own home. This was a senseless and violent crime that left a family broken and bereft,” Leuthold said.

Judge Leuthold sentenced Pinyerd to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He added a three-year mandatory consecutive sentence on a firearm specification.