BUCYRUS—Opening statements in the murder trial of Timothy Montgomery began on Tuesday in the Crawford County Common Pleas Courtroom. Judge Sean Leuthold is presiding over the trial.

Crawford County Prosecutor Dan Stanley outlined the state’s interpretation of the events that led to the beating Death of Michael “Mikey” Benedict in October of 2021.

Police were called to a disturbance at the Just Jokin’ bar around 2 am. Reports indicated fighting and broken glass involved. When police arrived at the bar, they encountered Mikey Benedict and Cameron Davis in an argument. All involved were ordered to leave the bar. According to Prosecutor Stanley, on the way out of the bar, Benedict turned and punched Davis.

Prosecutor Stanley noted that the Montgomery group tried to block the Benedict group from leaving. Stanley told the jury that even though there were no visible marks on her face, defendant Jacqueline Montgomery said Benedict punched her in the face. This, according to Stanley, enraged Timothy Montgomery.

Although time stamps reflect slightly different times, Cameron Davis, Tim Montgomery, and Jacqueline Montgomery are seen walking away from the bar at approximately 2:10 am.

At approximately 2:23 am, a 911 call from a neighbor described three people hitting, kicking, and beating a man, later identified as Benedict. The neighbor can be heard telling the 911 operator: “ They’re going to kill him .”Awakened by the noise, Chris Kelley watched out of his bedroom window and described what he was seeing to the 911 dispatcher. Kelley’s home camera angles picked up footage both before and after the beating but not of the actual beating itself.

Stanley told the jury that the state has made a plea deal with Cameron Davis. Davis has already agreed to accept a 20-year sentence in exchange for his truthful testimony against both the Montgomery defendants.

Stanley told the jury that Montgomery’s shirt was covered in blood because after Davis punched, hit, and kicked Benedict:

“Montgomery came in to finish the job.” He asked the jury to convict Montgomery of murder.

Timothy Montgomery’s attorney Terry Hitchman told the jury his client had been waiting 15 months in jail to tell his story of what happened that night.

Hitchman accused Crestline Police Detective Jason Kitzmiller of poor police work. He maintained that his client tried to tell police what happened within minutes of the assault. However, Hitchman told the jury that the case against his client has been essentially “set in stone by Detective Kitzmiller’s body cam.”

It is asserted by the defense that Kitzmiller put handcuffs on Montgomery simply because of visible blood on his shirt and pants.

All this while Hitchman said his client was repeatedly telling Kitzmiller he pulled someone off Benedict, and that’s why he was bloody. Hitchman said his client showed both his hands to Kitzmiller to prove he hadn’t hit Benedict.

Cameron Davis, who also had blood on both his shirt and shoes, approached Kitzmiller, saying it was all his fault. Later, according to Hitchman, Davis can be heard telling Kitzmiller: “I did this. Tim didn’t do this. Tim was being a Good Samaritan. I swear on my kids’ life I did this.”

According to Hitchman, the story was so believable that Kitzmiller released Montgomery and his wife and arrested Cameron Davis.

The Montgomery’s were arrested later after police talked to the witness who saw the beating from his window. He told a police dispatcher that all three suspects were beating Benedict.

Hitchman told the jury his client would testify, and they would see evidence from another witness’ home. He told the jury that from moments after the assault and all the way through his interrogation, Timothy Montgomery’s recollection of the incident has not changed. He has maintained throughout that he only pulled Davis off Benedict and is, therefore, not guilty of murder.

Crawford County Now will continue to cover this ongoing trial.