Detective: 1st hitter defended himself

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A prosecutor reveals some details in the death of Kevin Elza but said others cannot be discussed.

By ED RUNYAN

VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF

GIRARD — Kevin Elza of Bristolville died after being punched outside the Golf Dome on North State Street by a man not charged in the case because his actions were in self-defense, a Girard detective says.

The circumstances surrounding Elza's death Nov. 6, 2005, have been cloudy since the death occurred, with police and prosecutors refusing to release an explanation of what caused Elza's death because of an ongoing investigation and prosecutions against three men.

Now that the three defendants have been sentenced, Chuck Morrow, assistant Trumbull County prosecutor, said no such restrictions should be present, and he explained several details relating to Elza's death and referred other questions to the Girard Police Department.

Morrow said in October that neither Brian Charles, 22, nor David Riehl, 20, both of Girard, did anything of an "assaultive nature" to Elza and that is why both men were charged with misdemeanor offenses and given probation.

He said Roberto Dubelt, 20, of Girard, was charged with misdemeanor assault and sentenced to 25 weeks in county jail because he did hit Elza, 36, but only after Elza had suffered a fatal injury called a hinge fracture. Morrow said he wouldn't say what caused the hinge fracture but said it is consistent with a person falling backward and hitting his head.

Morrow said a hinge fracture runs essentially in the direction from ear to ear across the back of the skull. Morrow would not say what occurred between the two men but said Elza was punched at least one time by someone other than Dubelt.

Cause of death

On the death certificate filed by the Mahoning County coroner's office Feb. 6, 2006, Elza's death was attributed to "blunt impacts to head, with multiple skull, brain, and soft tissue injuries." Under the category "describe how injury occurred," the death certificate said, "struck in face by another(s)."

Morrow said legal ethics prevent him from discussing details of the fourth man's actions but said a grand jury considered charges against him and refused to indict. He referred questions about the man to Girard police.

Girard Detective Greg Manente said this week that there was a man other than Dubelt who did punch Elza, but the man was acting in self-defense. Manente refused to answer other questions that day and has been unavailable since then to provide other details, such as the identity of the man. Police Chief Frank Bigowski has not returned phone calls.

A report from the coroner's office said Elza and a friend left the Golf Dome around 2:30 a.m. and got into a conflict with several people.

Morrow said that Charles dared Riehl to get into the vehicle owned by Elza's friend as a practical joke, which Riehl did, and that Elza's friend was in the front passenger seat at the time. A fight between Elza and the fourth man occurred at that point, Morrow said.

Morrow said that though Elza was punched, he would not characterize Elza's death as a "beating."

"There's nothing to suspect that there was any type of beating that took place, [nothing to indicate] that Mr. Elza was gang-assaulted," Morrow said.

He asserted that no evidence suggests that Elza was hit more than two times by any one person and nothing to indicate he was hit more than five times in total, including two times by Dubelt.

Morrow added that the alcohol level in Elza's blood was sufficient that it could have prevented him from maintaining his balance normally or prevented him from bracing himself from a fall after being hit.

"It's an unfortunate situation," Morrow said of the death, saying it left a lot of people unhappy on both sides — Elza's family and the families of the three men convicted in the case.

A lawsuit filed by Tracy L. Elza, Kevin Elza's widow and administrator of his estate, is pending in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court against Dubelt, Charles, Riehl and the Golf Dome over her husband's death.

runyan@vindy.com

Sunday, December 17, 2006