By John Futty, The Columbus Dispatch
COLUMBUS – Franklin County prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for a man who set his ex-girlfriend on fire in a Gahanna parking lot more than two years ago.
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Michael W. Slager, 42, is serving an 11-year prison term for the incident, but his victim, Judy Malinowski, was still clinging to life when he was convicted in December.
Prosecutors had reserved the right to file additional charges if she died of her injuries. Malinowski, 33, died June 27, nearly two years after Slager doused her with gasoline and set her ablaze.
On Monday, a grand jury indicted Slager for aggravated murder with death penalty specifications. He is eligible for the death penalty because he is accused of causing the death while committing aggravated arson.
Prosecutor Ron O’Brien said his office awaited autopsy results before taking the case to the grand jury to make sure that Malinowksi died because of Slager’s actions. The autopsy was completed about 10 days ago, he said, and found the death was due to thermal injuries caused by the fire. The coroner ruled the death a homicide.
The burns Malinowski suffered were so severe that parts of her body melted away. Doctors expected her to die within days.
Despite the gravity of her condition, Malinowski managed to leave behind a video deposition for possible use in future proceedings against Slager. Common Pleas Judge Michael J. Holbrook approved the prosecution’s request for the deposition, which was taken in January via video conferencing from her hospital bed.
If used in Slager’s death-penalty trial, O’Brien thinks it would mark “the first time that the deposition of a murder victim was used in the prosecution of the case,” at least in central Ohio.
Malinowski inspired Ohio legislation requiring six additional years in prison for crimes that permanently maim or disfigure victims. Her relatives were there as Republican Gov. John Kasich signed “Judy’s Law” last month.