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Monday, September 16, 2024

Plea Taken Prior to Mushroom, Marijuana Shooting Trial

On September 13, Jonathan Conkle appeared in Muskingum County Common Pleas Court in front of Judge Mark Fleegle. Conkle plead guilty to one count of attempted murder with a firearm specification, and one count of robbery. He faces 22 years in prison at his sentencing, which will be held in the future.

Assistant Prosecutor John Litle, who handled the case, provided the facts to the Court at the plea.

According to investigators, last summer Conkle attended the “Bonaroo” music festival in Tennessee. The festival features EDM music and is known for the audience’s heavy use of marijuana and psychedelic drugs.

Conkle drove back to Ohio from the concert between June 19th and June 20th of 2023, and was acting out-of-sorts with his employer the morning of June 21, 2023. That morning, Conkle became hysterical, then became convinced that a receipt he saw on the ground was instructions that he should go shopping.

Conkle stole the company work van. Then he drove to the gas station in Nashport listed on the receipt and began buying the items listed. Misreading the receipt, Conkle thought he needed dry ice. He asked the clerk where he could purchase dry ice and she suggested a welding supply shop.

Conkle searched for nearby welding shops, leading him to his victim, Justin Jasper’s shop on West Muskingum Avenue here in Zanesville. When Conkle arrived he was told there was no dry ice at the shop. Conkle then asked to purchase a truck and Jasper’s motorcycle.

When he was turned down, Conkle came to believe that Jasper had done something wrong. He reached into his fanny pack and removed a handgun that had been left in the work truck by a co-worker. Conkle shot at Jasper four times, striking him in his face, chest, wrist and having one bullet stopped by Jasper’s watch.

Jasper ran from the garage, with Conkle following quickly behind, now armed with a crowbar. Conkle then savagely beat Jasper while he lay on the ground. Jasper’s injuries were extreme and his survival from the incident alone was a miracle.

Conkle then searched through Jasper’s pockets and took his motorcycle key.

Neighbors all around were calling the police. The Zanesville Police Department was on scene within two minutes. Patrolman Scott Blanton saw Conkle run into the building and he followed active-shooter protocol, pursuing Conkle into the shop at his own risk without waiting for backup.

Conkle was caught after running through the building and trying to start Jasper’s motorcycle.

While officers were arresting him, Conkle made remarks that the officers couldn’t prove anything, and that there were not any cameras.

The entire incident was captured on camera.

As he was being walked to a cruiser, Conkle unsuccessfully attempted to steal patrolman Bryan Wolfe’s firearm off of his hip.

Conkle was interviewed by Zanesville Police Detective Seargent Phil Michel and Detective Chris Andrews. During the interview he admitted that he intended to kill Jasper, as well as admitting he had never seen or known Jasper prior to showing up at his shop.

In the jail, Conkle engaged in bizarre behaviors, consuming his feces, climbing on window sills and jumping off, and ultimately assaulting an officer sent in to deal with him.

Conkle’s attorney filed a plea that Conkle was not guilty by reason of insanity. Over the next months, the Court was provided with two separate reports by forensic psychologists claiming that Conkle was temporarily insane at the time of the offense. These psychologists concluded that the insanity was not the result of voluntarily using drugs.

The Muskingum County Prosecutor’s Office hired an independent psychologist, who concluded that Conkle’s behavior was the result of voluntarily using intoxicants.

As part of the ongoing investigation, numerous people Conkle met at the Tennessee festival were located, interviewed and provided evidence of Conkle’s use of psychedelic mushrooms and marijuana while at the music festival. This information helped support the conclusion of the State’s psychiatrist.

The resolution of the case reflects the seriousness of Jasper’s injuries. It also takes into consideration risks related to a trial with competing expert testimony.

“Asking a jury to pass judgment on a psychologist’s report is different than having them evaluate the facts and evidence.” John Litle added that, “The dispute in this case was never about the facts, it was about how a jury might treat testimony from different experts.”

The plea provides certainty of conviction and a guarantee of punishment.

It is believed that this incident is the first contact Conkle has had with law enforcement.

“The decision to smoke high-THC marijuana and eat psychedelic mushrooms has consequences,” according to Litle. “Justin Jasper is suffering a lifetime of pain because of Conkle’s belief that what he was putting in his body was ‘just a plant.’”

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