A man convicted of second-degree murder for the manual strangulation of his wife will face another challenge in the coming months in the battle over the couple’s young son.
Defense attorney Dan Ripper, who had argued to a jury that defendant Kenneth Gann simply “snapped” the day he killed Robyn Burns Gann, said after the verdict was read Thursday that he expects a lawsuit pending in Hamilton County Chancery Court to be converted into a parental termination case.
Mr. Ripper noted that Mr. Gann, 25, had taken a chance before a jury so that he might possibly be reunited one day with his son.
The attorney told jurors from the beginning that there was “no question” that Mr. Gann killed his estranged wife on March 2, 2008, in their Hixson home.
PDF: Gann motion
Mr. Gann even confessed to the crime from his hospital bed less than 24 hours later as he lay recovering from his own suicide attempt after realizing what he had done.
As a result, the two-day trial in Hamilton County Criminal Court largely played out as an exercise in determining what kind of punishment Mr. Gann would receive.
Had the jury agreed with the prosecution’s theory that Mr. Gann planned the killing, he could have been convicted of first-degree murder, which carries life in prison as the punishment.
Mr. Gann’s second-degree murder conviction, which means the jury did not believe premeditation had been proved, carries 15 to 25 years behind bars. He will be sentenced May 3.
“It’s a much better outcome than first-degree murder,” Mr. Ripper said reluctantly.
Scores of the victim’s supporters attended the trial wearing pins with a photo of Mrs. Gann, 25, kissing her son, who was 2 years old at the time of her death.
In their closing arguments, prosecutors said Mr. Gann’s recorded confession was a “self-serving statement” made after the fact and an attempt to explain away the killing as the result of a dysfunctional marriage.
Executive Assistant District Attorney Neal Pinkston said Mrs. Gann’s family was OK with the verdict.
“I think they’re still just dealing with the impact that their daughter’s not with us,” Mr. Pinkston said.