Wednesday, May 19, 1999
Man held in beating death at bar
BY JANICE MORSE
The Cincinnati Enquirer
HAMILTON — Ernie Gross' widow describes her husband as “everybody's friend,” and says the man charged with beating him was probably a stranger.
“Ernie, as far as I know, didn't have any enemies,” Inez Gross said Tuesday. “In fact, he had a lot of friends — so many friends. That's why this has stunned a lot of people.”
He will be buried today.
For the past decade, Mr. Gross had run Ernie's Variety Store, a small shop that sold T-shirts, trinkets and toys, on Erie Highway.
Mr. Gross, 55, was pronounced dead early Saturday at Mercy Hospital Hamilton after he was beaten outside Barney's Bar at Benninghofen and Fairview avenues.
A friend, Daryl Robbins, 55, also was beaten and badly injured. Mr. Robbins was released Sunday from Fort Hamilton Hospital.
Andrew Phillip Sutton, a 21-year-old construction worker, was arrested Tuesday and charged with murder in Mr. Gross' death. He was ordered held in the Butler County Jail without bond.
A second suspect, James Earl McIntosh, 21, who is unemployed, was arrested Monday and charged with felonious assault in connection with Mr. Robbins' injuries. He will remain in the county jail unless he posts $15,000 bond.
A Hamilton police report says two people beat Mr. Gross, but Mr. Sutton is the only person charged in his death, according to police reports.
Police did not say Tuesday whether another arrest was expected, and they have not released a suspected motive for the beatings.
Butler County Coroner Dr. Richard P. Burkhardt said Mr. Gross died from a fractured skull and bleeding in his brain. The death was ruled a homicide “due to unarmed fight or brawl,” Dr. Burkhardt said.
Mr. Gross was a member of Eagles Lodge 407 and Moose Lodge 36.
Besides his wife, Mr. Gross leaves his mother, Effie; a brother, Bobby; and sister, Ruth Smith, all of Hamilton.
Service for Mr. Gross will be at 2 p.m. today at the Brown-Dawson Funeral Home, 330 Pershing Ave. Friends may call one hour before the service.
Burial will be in Greenwood Cemetery.
Short Vine may charge for Sunday night entry
Casinos could need luck in Covington
City hopes to break new ground by selling convention center
Heritage, tradition clash in nickname dispute
Reward for suspect reaches $6,000
Don't force 'Star Wars' on me
Fans flock to 'Phantom Menace'
'Phantom Menace' needs a heart
Tell us what you think
Grandpa's grief over dying boy turns to good
Kids petition: Don't ban ice cream man
Rescued pilot insists peace is worth risks
UC is taking hospital workers' parking spots
Utility reform bill goes to House
County, city fret about losing frequencies
Repairs led to kid porn material
Child-sex case may grow, police say
GET TO IT
'Love! Valour!' funny, spirited
Uterine fibroids procedure offers hysterectomy option
Crossing guard solution sought
Fired worker criticizes DHL in suit
Five Lebanon teen-agers hurt in wreck
HMO plan may bar lawsuits
Jail opponents rattle cages
Land battle may land in court
Lebanon picks manager
Man held in beating death at bar
Mason schools squeezed
Ohio House to reconsider lemon law
OU equipping dorms with computers
School-levy triumph repeated
School overflows to local church
Six-day peace walk ends
Stolen money catalyst for student's winning essay
Striking worker hit by truck
TRISTATE DIGEST
Twelve injured in 10-vehicle pileup
Visit to Balkans calms Voinovich
