ASHLAND — Earl Donley faced the man who killed his stepson Tuesday morning.
“I hope you die a long, slow and painful death in prison,” Donley said to Howard Walters in Ashland County Common Pleas Court.
“I am not a very strong believer in the afterlife, but you make me hopeful there is a hell,” the stepfather of Kurtis Harstine said before Walters was sentenced to spend the next 33 years to life in prison.
“The thought of you burning in eternity offers me some solace. I would ask Him to have mercy on your soul, but you don’t deserve it,” Donley said.
Harstine, 41, was found shot to death in his former home on Jan. 27, 2023. He had filed for divorce from Walters’ daughter in May 2022.
Harstine’s sisters and mother addressed the court and Walters too, telling him about the pain he caused with his actions. Their comments focused on Harstine’s kindness, and they touched on Walters losing out on seeing his own grandchildren while behind bars.
Visiting Judge Janet Burnside sentenced Walters in a court session that lasted nearly an hour.
Ashland County Prosecutor Christopher Tunnell issued a statement after the hearing, calling the murder “an unspeakable tragedy.”
“While no sentence can undo the pain caused by the defendant’s actions, we believe this outcome ensures justice for Kurtis Harstine, his family, and our community,” Tunnell said.
“Through the diligent efforts of law enforcement and my office, we have secured a resolution that holds Mr. Walters accountable for his crimes. When the defendant first sees a parole board he will be over 90 years old.
“Today’s sentence is effectively a life term for this killer and he will never breathe free again,” Tunnell said.
(Below is a PDF of a press release issued by Ashland County Prosecutor Christopher Tunnell after Howard Walters was sentenced Tuesday morning.)
Some of the charges against Walters were combined as part of a plea bargain. Charges included aggravated murder, aggravated burglary, aggravated robbery and tampering with evidence.
Walters’ sentences will all be served concurrently, for a total combined sentence of 33 years to life. He will be eligible for parole after 33 years.
“I am sorry for all of this pain,” Walters said. “And I am responsible. That’s enough.”
Case proceedings
The sentence came after Walters changed his plea at the beginning of the month. His defense attorney, James Mayer III, and Ashland County Prosecutor Chris Tunnell reached a plea deal that spared him the potential death penalty.
Other coverage of Walters’ case
If Walters had instead gone to trial, his case would have been the first capital case in Ashland County since 2018.
The last capital case in Ashland County happened when Shawn Grate was sentenced to death and a minimum of 90 years to life in prison for killing Stacey Stanley and Elizabeth Griffith. Grate was determined to be indigent in that case, which ended up costing Ashland County $115,000.
Walters filed for indigency last January, but lost that battle.
Before the murder, he had worked at Ashland University from 2001 to 2021. Until May 2023, he worked at North Central State College as an academic administrator. He told the court Tuesday he’d earned a doctorate degree.
He also owned an LLC, which operated eight Ashland rental properties. They were valued at $710,000, but all eight properties went to Walters’ wife following a divorce settlement in 2024.
Walters has been housed at the Ashland County Jail since July 2023.
After sentencing, Walters was returned to the custody of the Ashland County Sheriff’s Office to await transportation to an Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections prison.