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Justice Recuses Himself From Pike Murders Case

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A newly elected Ohio Supreme Court justice is taking himself off a case involving autopsies of eight slain family members.Justice Patrick DeWine filed a notice of recusal Monday in the dispute over autopsy reports on seven adults and a teenage boy from the Rhoden family found shot to death at four homes near Piketon on April 22.

At issue in the case are lawsuits filed by Ohio newspapers seeking full, unredacted copies of the reports.

DeWine, a Republican, did not explain his decision. He is the son of Attorney General Mike DeWine, who is leading the investigation of the still unsolved killings and fighting the newspapers’ requests.

Democrats predicted Patrick DeWine would face several conflicts of interest if elected because his father was involved in so many cases.