A mentally ill man who in 2020 killed four people within a day pleaded guilty to manslaughter charges and was sentenced to 36 to 40 years in prison.
Alto Miles, 47, appeared by video in Hamilton County Common Pleas Court from a psychiatric hospital in Columbus, where court documents say he has been held for more than two years. In contrast to hearings in 2023, Miles was calm and answered most of Judge Chris Wagner’s questions with a confident “yes, sir.”
The fatal shootings happened in April 2020, possibly within a few hours of each other. Investigators believe the first two killed were Miles’ one-time girlfriend, 35-year-old Tasia Mason, and 56-year-old Bridgett Carter. Their bodies were found on April 10, 2020, at an apartment in North Avondale. That same day, William Bowen III, 28, and Michael Eves, 47, were fatally shot at an Avondale apartment.
Prosecutors have previously described Miles as a “spree killer.”
A plea hearing in 2023 ended in chaos after Miles became agitated, shouted profanities refused to plead, and a one point said to his attorney: “You ain’t God… I’m God.”
Alto Miles, strapped to a restraint chair, at an October 2023 hearing in Hamilton County Common Pleas Court.
Miles initially faced the death penalty. But in 2023, Wagner ruled that, under a new state law, Miles’ serious mental illness prohibited the state from executing him.
Miles has been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, but through medication and treatment, has been deemed competent to stand trial.
During the sentencing, one of his attorneys, Brandon Fox, said that ever since he and his colleagues took over the case last year after Miles’ previous attorneys withdrew, Miles has been respectful and cooperative.
“Initially, he showed no remorse. Thankfully, today, he is in a much different space,” Fox said. “He understands the wrongfulness of his actions. He’s here taking responsibility for his actions.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Alto Miles pleads guilty to manslaughter, sentenced to 36-40 years