A man who spent 13 years on Ohio's death row will try to make a deal with prosecutors to spare his life.

        Ronald Combs said Tuesday he wants a three-judge panel to decide his fate when he goes on trial again this year for the murders of Marguerite “Peggy” Schoonover and her mother, Joan Schoonover.

        The request for a panel is usually considered a first step toward a plea deal. Any deal would likely include a promise that prosecutors will not push for a death sentence.

        Mr. Combs was convicted of the murders in 1988 and sentenced to death.

        But Mr. Combs' convictions were overturned last year after an appeals court ruled he did not get a fair trial.

        A new trial could be a challenge for prosecutors because so much time has passed since the crime. Witnesses and evidence are older, and the victims' family may not want to endure another trial.

        “We are exploring the possibili ty of a plea,” said Prosecutor Mike Allen.

        Prosecutors say Mr. Combs chased Peggy Schoonover, his former girlfriend, and her mother to a Queensgate parking lot on June 15, 1987, and shot them both to death.

        Mr. Combs' attorney, Perry Ancona, would not discuss the case.

        But in Common Pleas Court on Tuesday, Mr. Ancona told Judge Thomas Crush that his client wanted a three-judge panel. The panel would be composed of judges Crush, John West and Melba Marsh.

        Under Ohio law, defendants may choose to have a panel hear their case instead of a jury.

        The panel would then decide guilt or innocence and impose a sentence.

        If a defendant pleads guilty, he must do so in front of a panel.

        Although the panels are rare, two have been convened in Hamilton County during the past year:

        Lance Love was sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole for the slaying of James Osterbrock.

        And Donovan Clark received the same sentence for the murder of Joseph Abel.

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