"Something Had to Make an Individual": Anthony Kirkland After the Verdict, 2010
Led from court to jail an hour after a jury convicted him, Anthony Kirkland told a TV reporter he was sorry and questioned whether anyone is born a monster.
- Subject
- Anthony Kirkland
- Recorded
- about March 12, 2010
- Runtime
- 2:08
Content warning: Concerns the murders of two teenage girls and two women.
The Interview
On March 12, 2010, a Hamilton County jury in Cincinnati found Anthony Kirkland guilty of the murders of 14-year-old Casonya Crawford and 13-year-old Esme Kenney. About an hour later, as he was led from court to jail, WLWT reporter Eric Flack called out questions to him in the courthouse hallway. Kirkland, who had sat motionless as the verdicts were read, answered. He said he apologized "for what is happening", agreed that he was sorry for what he did, and, asked whether he was a monster, replied that something had to make an individual the way they are.
Historical Context
In 1987 Kirkland killed Leola Douglas and set her body on fire; he pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and was paroled in 2003. Between 2006 and 2009 he killed four more women and girls in Cincinnati: Casonya Crawford, 14, in 2006; Mary Jo Newton in 2006; Kimya Rolison, whose body was found in 2008; and Esme Kenney, 13, who was killed while jogging on March 7, 2009. That evening police searching for her found him sitting under a tree in nearby woods, with her watch and iPod in his pockets.
Circumstances of the Interview
On the morning his trial began, Kirkland pleaded guilty to some counts, including the murders of Mary Jo Newton and Kimya Rolison. The jury heard the remaining charges and, after what WLWT reported as about three and a half hours of deliberation, returned guilty verdicts on all counts. The WLWT report was broadcast that day. The hallway exchange was not part of the court proceedings: Kirkland was answering a reporter while in custody.
What the Interview Covers
The anchor and John London introduce the verdict. Flack asks whether Kirkland has anything to say to the families, to Esme's family and to his own family, why he did it, and whether he is a monster. Kirkland asks whether he is allowed to comment, apologizes, and says he does not think he is allowed to say why. London closes by noting that Kirkland smiled at his lawyers as the jury left, and that he might give an unsworn statement when the penalty phase began the following Tuesday.
What Makes the Recording Significant
These were among Kirkland's first public words after his conviction. Four days later he read an unsworn statement to the same jury (see record V038), in which he said he deserved to die and asked them to spare his life. The jury recommended death, and he was sentenced on March 31, 2010.
Archival Importance
The death sentences were later vacated by the Ohio Supreme Court in 2016, and Kirkland was sentenced to death again in 2018. This short exchange preserves how he presented himself in the first hour after the jury's verdict.
Important Caveats
Kirkland's suggestion that something "had to make" him what he is is his own view, not a finding. The exchange is brief and partly hard to hear: some words are uncertain, and one voice in the hallway cannot be identified. The video's title says he "says he's no monster"; in the recording he does not say that in those words, but answers the question with a question.
Anchor: The other story: four families have been waiting so long for a verdict in the Anthony Kirkland trial. Guilty on all charges. News 5's John London has new details you haven't seen yet. He's in the newsroom with the number two story. John?
John London: Yeah, Jack. Convicted on all counts of the murders of Casonya Crawford and Esme Kenney. Anthony Kirkland sat motionless as the verdict was read, but for the first time he was somewhat talkative about his crimes and his circumstance as he was led from court to jail. In the hallway about an hour ago, as Kirkland passed by reporters, News 5's Eric Flack started questioning him about the verdict.
Eric Flack: Anthony, anything to say to the families of your victims?
Anthony Kirkland: Am I allowed to make comment?
Eric Flack: You're allowed to talk.
Unidentified Voice: Absolutely not.
Eric Flack: What do you have to say?
Anthony Kirkland: [unclear: "Apologize" / "I apologize"] for what is happening.
Eric Flack: You apologize for [unclear: "the happenings" / "their happiness"]?
Anthony Kirkland: For the happenings. [unclear: "The curses" / "Of course"].
Eric Flack: You're sorry for what you did?
Anthony Kirkland: Sure, yes sir.
Eric Flack: Anything to Esme's family?
Anthony Kirkland: Esme's family?
Eric Flack: Why'd you do it?
Anthony Kirkland: I don't think I'm allowed to answer that. [unclear: "You have to speak with me" / "You'd have to speak with my (attorney)"].
Eric Flack: [unclear: "Your meters"] called you a monster. Are you a monster?
Anthony Kirkland: [unclear: "If you've seen" / "Have you ever seen"] any human being born as a monster? Something had to make an individual the way they are. And I think that's what needs to be questioned.
Eric Flack: Do you have anything to say to your family?
Unidentified Voice: [unclear: "How did he get that?"]
John London: As the jury left the room, Kirkland turned to his attorneys and smiled. He may deliver an unsworn statement on Tuesday when the penalty phase starts. He would not be under oath, so there would be no cross-examination possibility. One or two of his relatives may testify as defense lawyers try to keep him off death row. The jury took about three and a half hours to reach their decision. Guilty [unclear: "shari" / "verdicts"] across the board. ---