Roy Harvison is an Ohio man serving life in prison for the April 1, 2015, shooting deaths of his estranged wife, Jenea R. Harvison, and her brother, Donell McDonald, outside Jenea’s daycare business in Columbus. He pleaded guilty on January 19, 2018, to two counts of aggravated murder and was sentenced to life with no eligibility for parole for 66 years.1The Columbus Dispatch. Man Gets 66 Years to Life in Prison for Double Slaying
The Shooting Outside Success Kidz
Around noon on April 1, 2015, Harvison drove to the parking lot of the Success Kidz main office and training center at Parsons Avenue and Kossuth Street on Columbus’s south side. His estranged wife Jenea, 29, owned the daycare chain. Her 23-year-old brother, Donell McDonald, was the company’s finance manager and was sitting in a parked silver Camaro.2The Columbus Dispatch. Judge Denies Bail for Man Charged in Double Slaying
Harvison shot McDonald first through the car, then turned the gun on Jenea as she walked toward the vehicle. After she fell on Kossuth Street, he walked over and fired several more shots into her, then returned to the car and shot McDonald again.2The Columbus Dispatch. Judge Denies Bail for Man Charged in Double Slaying Witnesses said he continued waving the gun and firing after both victims were down.3WBNS-10TV. Police Shoot Gunman Who Killed Two in Southeast Side Parking Lot
Two Columbus police community liaison officers who had just finished a visit with kindergarteners nearby were first on the scene. They used their vehicles as shields and ordered Harvison to drop the weapon. He refused and, according to witnesses, raised the gun toward them. The two officers and a sergeant opened fire, striking him. No officers were hurt.3WBNS-10TV. Police Shoot Gunman Who Killed Two in Southeast Side Parking Lot Harvison was taken to OhioHealth Grant Medical Center for surgery and was released on April 6, 2015.2The Columbus Dispatch. Judge Denies Bail for Man Charged in Double Slaying
Who Jenea Harvison and Donell McDonald Were
Jenea had filed for divorce from Roy Harvison in September 2014. A graduate of Walnut Ridge High School and Ohio State University, she founded Success Kidz, a chain of 24-hour daycare centers aimed at low-income parents working second and third shifts, and operated five locations by the time she was killed. She was the mother of two children, ages five and two.4The Columbus Dispatch. Parsons Ave. Shooting Victim Was Rising Entrepreneur She had been selected as the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Young Entrepreneur of the Year for central Ohio, with the ceremony scheduled for May 5, 2015.5The Columbus Dispatch. Preschool Founder, Brother Die in Shooting
Donell Miller McDonald Jr., born February 2, 1992, in Warren, Ohio, was attending Ohio State and working as Success Kidz’s finance manager. He was engaged to Mary Thornton and had a young son.6The Chapel of Peace. Obituary for Donell Miller McDonald Jr.
The Plea Deal
A Franklin County grand jury indicted Harvison on two counts of aggravated murder with death-penalty specifications, and the office of Prosecutor Ron O’Brien handled the case.7Sunny 95. Man Could Face Death Penalty for Double Slaying The case stayed pending for nearly three years. On January 19, 2018, Harvison pleaded guilty to both aggravated murder counts and gun specifications. Prosecutors dropped the death-penalty specifications in return.
Assistant Prosecutor James Lowe told the court that the victims’ family supported the agreement and had specifically asked that the death penalty be taken off the table. Both sides recommended life with no parole eligibility for 66 years, and Common Pleas Judge Michael J. Holbrook imposed that sentence.1The Columbus Dispatch. Man Gets 66 Years to Life in Prison for Double Slaying
What Was Said at Sentencing
Crystal Turner, the mother of both victims, spoke for more than 20 minutes. She told the judge her daughter had provided jobs to more than 300 people through the daycare chain, and said nothing Jenea could have said or done justified her murder. Turner also spoke about wanting civility going forward for the sake of the three children left behind, Jenea and Roy’s two children and Donell’s son.1The Columbus Dispatch. Man Gets 66 Years to Life in Prison for Double Slaying
Harvison spoke briefly. He said he accepted full responsibility but could not explain what he had done. “I can’t sleep at night. I can’t cope at all,” he told the judge. “The only thing I could possibly do is get right with God and ask for forgiveness.” His defense attorney, Frederick Benton, called Turner’s statement “so sincere, so eloquent, so powerful.”1The Columbus Dispatch. Man Gets 66 Years to Life in Prison for Double Slaying
Where Roy Harvison Is Now
Roy L. Harvison, inmate number A741692, is held at Chillicothe Correctional Institution. His earliest possible parole date is March 14, 2081, with a parole board review scheduled for January 2081.8Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. Offender Details – Roy L. Harvison He was 27 at sentencing, so he would be roughly 90 before he could first be considered for release.