Criminal Justice

Woman awaiting retrial for lawyer-boyfriend's slaying is investigated in venue motion forgeries

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A woman who is awaiting a retrial in the 2012 slaying of her lawyer boyfriend is being investigated in connection with submission of phony court documents.

Prosecutors in Kentucky investigated after noticing that many of the 156 affidavits supporting a change of venue for Shayna Hubers had signatures with “striking similarities,” according to a motion. Campbell County prosecutor Michelle Snodgrass said a notary admitted that 118 of the signatures were forged. Cincinnati.com, WCPO.com and Fox 19 covered the development.

One of the forged signatures was that of an assistant commonwealth’s attorney, Snodgrass said. “To respond to these affidavits, submitted by Ms. Hubers, would be to dignify them as more than they truly are, felonies,” she wrote.

Snodgrass also said the change of venue motion represented that there were 171 affidavits from Northern Kentucky residents supporting the change, but only 156 affidavits were submitted.

Hubers is awaiting retrial in the slaying of Cincinnati lawyer Ryan Poston.

Huber’s lawyers, David Eldridge and Jeff Lawson, said in a statement that they relied on what they believed to be a reputable investigative firm to assist in collecting the affidavits. The statement said the lawyers were “shocked and saddened” to learn that a notary employed by the firm had allegedly admitted to forging signatures.

Hubers had been convicted in 2015 of killing Poston on the night he was supposed to go on a date with the Miss Ohio USA 2012 contestant. Hubers won a retrial because one of the jurors had not disclosed he was a felon.

Hubers had claimed she was acting in self-defense when she killed Poston. But Hubers’ cellmate testified that Hubers laughed about the shooting and said she gave Poston the nose job he always wanted.

Typo in penultimate paragraph corrected at 11:45 a.m.

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