SUMMIT COUNTY, Ohio — The wife and family of a Minneapolis man are suing a county in Ohio, saying his alleged killer never should have been released from custody due to his dangerous criminal behavior.
Kassandra Peterson and family members of Ryan Peterson filed the suit against Summit County, Ohio, and agencies and individuals involved in the release and supervision of Ryan's killer, Franklin White. The lawsuit alleges that Summit County, which has touted criminal justice reforms that have “saved millions of dollars a year by jailing fewer suspects awaiting trials,” allowed White to escape supervision at a court-ordered halfway house and drive to Minnesota, where he stabbed the husband of a woman he was obsessed with to death.
Prosecutors say on August 11, 2022 White cut off a GPS monitoring bracelet and drove more than 11 hours cross country to the Peterson's home on the 1800 block of Arthur St NE in northeast Minneapolis. He then used a battering ram to force the door open and repeatedly stabbed Ryan Peterson as his wife screamed in horror, according to court documents. White fled the scene but was eventually pulled over and captured by the Wisconsin State Patrol.
White was a former classmate of Kassandra Peterson at Firestone High School in her hometown of Akron, Ohio, who had shown increasingly obsessive behavior towards her. He had been arrested and charged with felony home invasion after repeatedly breaking into the home of her parents in an attempt to contact Kassandra.
The lawsuit alleges that Summit County and the agencies responsible for monitoring White while on release did not recognize or take seriously enough how his mental condition was deteriorating.
"Medical records show that in the months leading up to his escape, while under the supervision of Oriana House, CSS, and the County, he was suffering extreme and escalating mental illness and psychosis, including schizophrenia, the symptoms of which included 'auditory and command hallucinations,' 'delusions, and agitation,' causing Franklin to go missing for days on end, and to miss medication and treatment appointments, including in the weeks and days leading up to his escape," court documents read.
Peterson's survivors also allege that none of the agencies or Summit County contacted Kassandra and Ryan Peterson after White escaped to let them know they were in danger.
The lawsuit was filed on multiple civil counts, including wrongful death and failure to warn. Plaintiffs Kassandra Peterson and both her and Ryan's parents are seeking damages in excess of $75,000 plus attorneys fees, court costs and other relief.
Court records indicate that Franklin White was finally found competent to stand trial for Peterson's murder on March 26 of this year, and the case is moving forward.