Rizer is charged with the April 3, 2009 murder of her husband, Kenneth Rizer, Sr. A jury seated in Rizer’s first trial in November acquitted her of aggravated murder but failed to reach a unanimous verdict on the lesser charge of murder.
Rizer’s body was first discovered by his son, after the defendant called him to say she had shot her husband. He was found in his reclining chair, and had been shot five times.
In the first trial, jurors heard four days of testimony from local law enforcement, agents and investigators with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation, and for the defense, an Alaska-based forensics expert who specializes in crime scene reconstruction, and others.
Rizer herself testified in her own defense in her first trial, telling of being sexually abused as a child and of sexual issues between herself and her husband.
Rizer said the five shots were fired at her husband in a struggle. She said her husband insisted on teaching her to use the semi-automatic handgun — against her wishes — and said the gun would not stop firing once the first shot fired.
Rizer received medical treatment after her first day of testimony, which was often emotional.
Potential new witnesses in the second trial might include Rizer’s granddaughter, who lived with the couple at the time of the shooting, and officials at the Washington County Jail, where Rizer has been jailed since her arrest in April.
The defense has subpoenaed a wooden paddle that hung in the Rizer family living room, and is seen in crime scene photos. A chair matching the recliner where Rizer’s body was found was introduced into evidence during the first trial, along with the semi-automatic handgun.
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