Christopher Cecil

RUTH AND CARL CECIL'S STORY

UPDATE: Parole was granted for murderer Christopher Cecil and he was released on April 9, 2015. Based on the horrific and violent nature of Christopher Cecil’s crimes we continue to believe his release did not further the interest of justice and he remains a threat to the community. We thank everyone who submitted a petition to keep Cecil in prison.

A Disgruntled Teen Decides To Kill

Christopher Cecil did not like authority and did not want to follow the rules. By 1983, the 17-year-old Cecil was well-known in the legal system. Between 1981 and 1983, he had been charged with breaking and entering, a curfew violation, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, criminal trespassing and receiving stolen property.

Christopher Cecil – who lived with his father, Carl Cecil, and stepmother, Ruth Cecil – was not happy living in a house where he was required take responsibility for himself. He also had a lot of anger toward his father and stepmother, blaming them for his father divorcing Christopher’s birth mother in 1977. When Christopher’s mother died of an epileptic attack in 1978, Christopher blamed them for that, too.

By the fall of 1983, Christopher Cecil found a solution for his problems. He decided to kill his father and stepmother.

Christopher Cecil started formulating his plans to kill Carl and Ruth Cecil in October or November 1983. Christopher originally wanted to burn down the house. He then decided it would be easier to shoot his father and stepmother. He then determined that shooting them would make too much noise and figured the best way to kill them was to electrocute them while they bathed together. Christopher drilled a hole next to the bathtub drain and was hoping to put an electrical wire in the hole to electrocute Carl and Ruth Cecil while they bathed. His plan was foiled when Carl Cecil discovered the hole and filled it.

A Brutal, Vicious, Premeditated Murder

Wednesday, December 21, 1983 was a typical night in the Cecil home. Christopher came home from his part-time job and Mrs. Cecil made him some soup. Mr. and Mrs. Cecil delivered Christmas cookies to friends, made popcorn, watched some television and went to bed. After the Cecils went to bed, Christopher’s friend Stephen Kolk arrived at the Cecil home. The two went down to Christopher’s basement bedroom and Christopher told Kolk that he had decided to beat his father and stepmother to death. He said after they were dead, he would put them in their car and crash it to make it look like an accident. Christopher asked Kolk to pick him up at the scene and then began talking about what he wanted to get his girlfriend for Christmas. Kolk thought Christopher was just talking and eventually fell asleep on the couch.

Shortly before 7:00 AM the next morning, Christopher woke Kolk and told him that Carl Cecil was coming to the basement. Christopher Cecil had fixed the basement light so it would not work. He also had a large metal flashlight and a homemade wooden club. When Carl Cecil, who was carrying a load of laundry, got to the bottom of the basement stairs, Kolk hit him in the head. As Mr. Cecil struggled with Kolk, Christopher Cecil began beating his father in the head with the flashlight. According to Kolk, Christopher Cecil hit Carl Cecil “so many times I couldn’t count.” Mr. Cecil fell to his knees and crawled under the basement steps for protection. As Mr. Cecil lay under the steps he heard someone say, “Oh, look at all the blood. He ain’t going anyplace. He’s dead.” Mr. Cecil then heard his son laugh. Kolk told Christopher Cecil “to be quiet” and Christopher Cecil said, “I can’t help it.” Believing Mr. Cecil was dead, the two then went upstairs to deal with Mrs. Cecil.

Mrs. Cecil was asleep in her bed when Christopher and Kolk entered the bedroom. Christopher told Kolk to hit his stepmother and Kolk refused. According to Kolk, “He [Christopher] went over and hit her a couple of times with the club and she said, ‘Chris, stop that.’ Then he [Christopher] got a long black flashlight and hit her impulsively on the head a number of times. He had no expression on his face.” Mrs. Cecil tried to get up and Christopher told Kolk to grab her. When Kolk grabbed Mrs. Cecil she said, “Oh my God,” and Christopher kept beating her until she was unconscious. Believing she was dead, Christopher went to the bathroom to clean up. When he returned, he noticed Mrs. Cecil was still breathing. Christopher took a white strap, wrapped it around Mrs. Cecil’s neck and strangled her until he thought she was dead.

Christopher heard sirens, went back downstairs and realized his father was gone. Christopher took his father’s .357 Magnum gun, and he and Kolk went to Christopher’s sister’s house, where no one was home. They got clothing and stole his sister’s 1975 Ford Mustang. The two drove around for a day while police were searching for them. Christopher eventually called his girlfriend and arranged to meet her at a restaurant. His girlfriend and her father met Christopher at the restaurant and took him the their house in their van. Kolk waited 15 minutes for Christopher to return. When Christopher did not come back, Kolk put the gun in the Mustang’s glove compartment, abandoned the car and went to his parents’ house.

A Plea Deal To Avoid The Death Penalty

Once Christopher Cecil arrived at his girlfriend’s house, her father called the police and advised them to pick him up. Detectives arrived, arrested Cecil and charged him with aggravated murder and felonious assault. A short time later, police went to Stephen Kolk’s parents’ home and questioned him. Police brought Kolk and his parents to police headquarters and, after questioning him further, they arrested him and charged him with felonious assault and murder.

Based on the overwhelming evidence, the Franklin County Prosecutor’s Office decided to seek the death penalty for 18-year-old Stephen Kolk. Since Christopher Cecil was under the age of 18, the death penalty was not an option. Cecil’s case was originally heard by the juvenile court, where Judge John C. Young determined Cecil should be tried as an adult. Judge Young stated that juvenile officials had “little, if any, luck with any rehabilitation programs he [Cecil] has been in.” Psychologist Robert E. Smith said Cecil continued to deny any involvement in criminal behavior and had never shown any remorse or guilt.

Realizing he was likely going to take the fall for Christopher Cecil’s actions and possibly going to die in the electric chair, Stephen Kolk agreed to plead guilty to complicity to commit murder in exchange for his testimony against Christopher Cecil.

Strong Evidence

At trial, the prosecution brought several powerful witnesses. A man who shared a jail with Christopher Cecil told jurors that Cecil told him he “beat them with a club, but she didn’t die right away, so he put a dog collar around her neck.”

Paramedic Steve Heughegart testified that Mrs. Cecil was lying at the foot of the bed, nude and face down. He told jurors Mrs. Cecil had several layers of bed clothing wrapped around her head and that, when he unwrapped the bed clothes, he found a belt around her throat. He also said that he saw a flashlight and what appeared to be a homemade club on the blood-covered bed. Mrs. Cecil was breathing shallowly and Heughegart told the jury he worked on Mrs. Cecil for half an hour; however, it appeared her injuries were fatal. She would die at the hospital a short time later.

The most emotional testimony came from Christopher’s father, Carl Cecil. His description of the murder closely matched Stephen Kolk’s testimony. He told jurors that he tried to remain still and pretended to be dead as his attackers shined a light on him. He said his attackers felt the back of his neck and then struck him repeatedly with metal and wooden objects. He said it was too dark in the basement to see who was attacking him, but by touch, smell and voice, he knew Christopher was one of his attackers. He said he got to his feet and started to go up the stairs when he heard Ruth Cecil say, “Get out of here, Chris get out of here!” He then went to a neighbor’s house and called police.

In closing arguments, Assistant Prosecutor David Johnson told the jury of nine women and three men that “He [Christopher Cecil] was so dissatisfied he destroyed that family. He destroyed himself in the process; destroyed everything he had.” Assistant Prosecutor Cinda Holthouse told jurors that Mrs. Cecil’s extensive injuries showed “venting an incredible amount of hostility and anger toward that woman.” She also stated, “It wasn’t enough to beat her skull until it shattered and split open. This was not a spur-of-the-moment action at all. [The beatings] were cold and calculated and planned.”

Guilty On All Counts

It took the jury two days to find Christopher Cecil guilty of aggravated murder with death penalty specifications for killing Ruth Cecil. He also was found guilty of attempted murder for trying to kill his father, and two petty theft charges for stealing the gun and the car. Since he was only 17 years old, the jury could not sentence him to death. Cecil received 20 years to life for killing Ruth Cecil, 7-25 years for attempting to kill his father and an additional three and a half years for the theft charges. His total aggregate sentence was 27-years to life. The only time Christopher Cecil showed any emotion during the trial was when he heard his girlfriend cry at his sentencing hearing.

As a result of his plea deal, Kolk was convicted of complicity to commit murder, attempted aggravated murder and two theft charges. He was sentence from 15 years to life for his crimes, plus an additional 18 months for stealing the gun. Stephen Kolk was eventually paroled and his whereabouts are unknown.

No Parole

Christopher Cecil is a calculated, cold-blooded murderer. He planned and carried out the brutal and violent murder of his stepmother and attempted to kill his own father. Although it has been over 30 years, Christopher Cecil has never expressed remorse to Ruth Cecil’s family. In addition, the only time he showed any emotion at trial was when he heard his then-girlfriend cry.

Releasing Christopher Cecil after serving only three years over his minimum sentence is a complete injustice to Ruth Cecil and demeans his extreme cruelty to her. In addition, Christopher Cecil is a ticking time bomb and his release poses a serious risk to the community, especially anyone who angers him. Due to the extreme and violent nature of Christopher Cecil’s crimes, we continue to believe that he should have been required to serve the full life sentence given to him by the jury.