CLEVELAND — The murder case against the brother of Olympian Simone Biles has been dismissed in Cleveland.
On Tuesday, Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Joan Synenberg ruled that prosecutors did not present evidence to sustain a conviction against Tevin Biles-Thomas. Biles-Thomas was on trial facing multiple counts of murder, voluntary manslaughter, felonious assault and perjury in connection with deaths of three men on New Year's Eve in 2018.
Moments after Judge Synenberg's decision, a woman in the court gallery charged at the defendant and screamed “You killed my baby!” Three sheriff’s deputies tackled the woman before she could reach Biles-Thomas. The woman was later identified as the mother of one of the murder victims.
"Following a ruling in The State of Ohio vs Tevin Biles-Thomas (CR-19-643478-A), a person in the gallery charged toward the defendant. The Court thanks the Sheriff’s Department for their assistance," a spokesperson for the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas told 3News in an email.
The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office declined to comment on the ruling by Judge Synenberg.
Last month, a mistrial was declared in the case against Biles-Thomas after jurors told the judge during the third day of deliberations that copies of legal briefs from Biles-Thomas’ lawyers and prosecutors were among the evidence given to them. The paperwork included arguments over whether Biles-Thomas might have acted in self-defense. All 12 jurors told the judge they had been influenced by the information outlined in the briefs.
The incident happened at an apartment building in the 4400 block of Denison Avenue -- which had been operating as an Airbnb -- when an “uninvited group” entered an ongoing New Year’s Eve party. Authorities say an altercation broke out as gunshots were fired.
19-year-old DelVaunte Johnson, 21-year-old Toshaun Banks and 23-year-old DeVaughn Gibson were killed.
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Editor's Note: The below video is from previous reporting about the case of Tevin Biles-Thomas