New Philadelphia, Ohio (WJER) - A Tuscarawas County grand jury has returned a two-count indictment against the man involved in a fight that led to the death of 38-year-old Nick Winters.

Tuscarawas County Prosecutor Ryan Styer says 43-year-old John L. Tucker is charged with involuntary manslaughter, a third-degree felony, and assault, a first-degree misdemeanor. Styer says they had been waiting on evidence to come back from the state crime lab since beginning their investigation into the October 12th fight.

“Detective Peters from Dover Police did a thorough job of investigating the matter. What we were mainly waiting on were a few items from the state crime lab that took a little while to process. Those came back earlier this month, and as soon as they did, we were ready to go to the grand jury,” he says.

Styer says the charges come with a maximum possible penalty of 36 months in prison. He says the charges seem appropriate given the details in the case.

“We basically objectively present the evidence to the grand jury. I feel that’s the job of the prosecutor, and it’s the jury’s prerogative to choose what charges to bring and for us to explain the full extent of the law and the charges they could bring,” he says.

Styer says Tucker was served the indictment and is now set to appear for his first court hearing May 16th in front of Judge Elizabeth Thomakos. 

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