Steubenville, Ohio — A local man awaits a grand jury’s decision on whether he will face trial following allegations of shooting into a Steubenville residence shortly after a relationship ended. The altercation involved Akerelhotep R. Hartley, 20, who is accused of firing two shots into a house where his 15-year-old ex-girlfriend was present but unharmed.
The incident reportedly took place on Feb. 1, when Hartley allegedly targeted a second-story window of a home located in the 500 block of South Fifth Street. Following the shooting, Hartley fled, only to be found asleep over 24 hours later in a basement on McNeal Avenue.
During Hartley’s recent court appearance, Municipal Judge John Mascio Jr. determined there was sufficient evidence to proceed, moving the case forward to the next term of the grand jury. Surveillance footage and testimonies during the hearing painted a conflicting picture of the event.
While no weapon was recovered at the scene, investigators located nine-millimeter casings. Hartley’s court-appointed attorney, Eric Reszke, challenged the veracity of the state’s evidence, citing that no direct witnesses saw Hartley fire the weapon, and he possessed neither a firearm nor ammunition at the time of his arrest. Reszke also noted a discrepancy in clothing descriptions between the suspect seen in surveillance footage and what Hartley was wearing when apprehended.
However, City Prosecutor Steven Lamatrice dismissed these clothing discrepancies as irrelevant, suggesting it’s common for individuals involved in criminal activities to dispose of evidence. He emphasized the alignment of Hartley’s phone location data with the scene before, during, and after the incident as significant evidence alongside the juvenile’s identification of Hartley’s voice on a recording taken during the shooting.
Enhancing the state’s case, Sgt. Brian Bissett recounted how security cameras captured the muzzle flashes and recorded audio of a man, allegedly Hartley, threateningly shouting as he ran from the scene. This narrative was further supported by video evidence presented by the victim’s family and police, including threats made by Hartley before the shooting and a video of him shortly afterwards, querying why there was no retaliation.
In response to Hartley’s attorney’s request that the bond be lowered due to Hartley’s lack of prior records and flight risk, Judge Mascio instead increased it from $300,000 to $500,000, citing grave concerns over the nature of the charges and the evidence presented during the preliminary hearing.
As the community and authorities await the grand jury’s decision, the case continues to develop, raising questions about evidence integrity, digital footprints in crime-solving, and the impacts of personal relationships turning hostile.
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