3 men arrested for death of Ethan Liming indicted by Summit County Grand Jury for lesser charges

AKRON, Ohio — A Summit County Grand Jury has issued indictments against the three men connected to the beating death of Akron teen Ethan Liming.

• 19-year-old Tyler Stafford on one count of assault and one count of involuntary manslaughter
• 20-year-old DeShawn Stafford Jr. on two counts of involuntary manslaughter, one count of assault, and one count of aggravated assault
• 21-year-old Donovon Jones for two counts of assault

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The trio had all initially been charged with murder and felonious assault when arrested more than a week after Ethan was found dead near the basketball courts at the I Promise School shortly before 11 p.m. on June 2.

According to a preliminary investigation, authorities say Ethan was with a group of friends who pulled into the school parking lot. That's when Ethan and his friends reportedly got involved in a fight with at least three other males who were already playing basketball at the property. Police said some of the teens used SplatRBall guns.

The indictment documents did not specify why the charges against the three were reduced. 

3News' Ryan Haidet contributed to this story

Previous Reporting:

• Bond set at $1 million for 3 suspects charged in death of Akron teen Ethan Liming
• 3 suspects charged with murder in death of Akron teen Ethan Liming
• 17-year-old found killed near Akron's I Promise School

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