Clark County prosecutor: Teen girl charged in fatal New Carlisle stabbing should be tried as adult

Clark County wants the case of a 15-year-old New Carlisle girl charged with murder and felonious assault bound over to adult court. BILL LACKEY/STAFF

Clark County wants the case of a 15-year-old New Carlisle girl charged with murder and felonious assault bound over to adult court. BILL LACKEY/STAFF

A legal motion filed Wednesday asks that a New Carlisle 15-year-old accused of killing the mother of her 13-year-old friend be bound over to adult court.

Natasha Ellis, 15, is charged in Clark County Juvenile Court with murder and two counts of felonious assault. She’s accused of killing 36-year-old Lee Moore with the 13-year-old as an accomplice. The 13-year-old’s brother and father were also attacked in the incident, according to the Clark County Sheriff’s Office.

Ellis pleaded innocent of the charges.

Clark County Prosecutor Dan Driscoll said his office believes the motion will help bring justice to the victims.

“We did that because of the severity of the crime and because of the indication of pre-planning of the crime that we have,” he said.

The motion filed with the court says “The juvenile is not amenable to care or rehabilitation within the juvenile system and the safety of the community may require that the juvenile be subject to adult sanctions.”

Driscoll said prosecutors also requested both girls undergo competency evaluations. He said the Clark County Sheriff’s Office is still conducting its investigation of the case.

Both teenagers were in Clark County Juvenile Court Wednesday for pretrial hearings.

The 13-year-old teen stood before Clark County Judge Katrine Lancaster while her father, sitting in a wheelchair at a table next to her, cried for most of the hearing.

The 13-year-old is too young to be tried as an adult according to Ohio law. However, Lancaster told her that prosecutors intend to file a motion that will allow them to try her as a serious youth offender. This would mean the girl will remain in Clark County Juvenile Court, but, if convicted, she could face adult penalties should she break the law after she serves a juvenile sentence.

An obituary for Moore posted on Rogers’ Funeral Homes in New Lebanon says services are currently pending.

“Lee Ann was preceded in death by her father, Douglas; grandfather, Mitchell Gray; and grandparents, Betty and Harold Moore. She is survived by her mother, Betsy; and many loving family members and friends,” the obituary says.

The two teenage girls were arrested after an investigation by the Clark County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies were called to a home on North Church Street in response to a reported stabbing.

They found three victims with stab wounds — the 13-year-old’s father, identified as 56-year-old Paul Greear, Greear’s 17-year-old son and the 13-year-old’s mother who was unresponsive.

Deputies say interviews with the suspects determined the 13-year-old suspect initiated conversations with Ellis and both conspired to have the older girl enter the house during the night with the younger girl’s help and assault and kill the man, woman and 17-year-old.

About the Author