Former Officer Bobby Cutts Jr Will Not Get Chance to Appeal

A former Canton police officer in prison for killing his pregnant girlfriend and unborn child will not get a chance to argue his appeal to the Ohio Supreme Court.

Bobby Cutts, Jr. is serving life in prison with a chance of parole after 57 years. His attorneys felt he deserved a new trial, but Wednesday, the Ohio Supreme Court refused to hear his appeal.

"We met with Bobby a couple of weeks ago, we talked about it, we were optimistic and quite frankly were surprised that the Supreme Court denied, will not grant jurisdiction hearing this matter," said defense attorney Fernando Mack.

Defense attorneys contend former Canton police officer Bobby Cutts, Jr. did not get a fair trial. In February 2008, Cutts was convicted of killing his pregnant girlfriend Jessie Davis and their unborn daughter.

"I think we have always felt the brief we filed was meritorious," said Mack.

Cutts' attorneys claim there were several errors made during the trial. For example, they felt the judge in the case should have allowed jurors to consider a charge of involuntary manslaughter.

"It was our contention that it occurred when there was an elbow that struck Jessie Davis, and he accidentally killed her...we believe that at that point, 'cause we believe that the death was instantaneous, Mr. Cutts panicked," said defense attorney Myron Watson.

They also claim the verdicts were inconsistent. Cutts was found guilty of aggravated murder for baby Chloe, and a lesser charge of murder for Jessie Davis, even though it was the same act. After the trial, some jurors said they felt he could have called for help to save the unborn baby.

"That's a morality question because the deaths were not caused by his failure to call for aid," said Watson.

His attorneys also felt because of the intense media attention, the trial should have been held somewhere else.

"People within Stark County, probably 90 percent of them thought that he was guilty prior to even selecting the jury," Mack said.

Cutts' attorneys say they will consider appealing the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Fox 8 News spoke to Jessie Davis' mother, Patti Porter. In a phone interview, Porter said she has mixed feelings about the decision.

She says she hopes Bobby Cutts gets another chance someday, although she realizes her feelings may not be very popular.

Porter also goes on to say she forgives Cutts, and doesn't feel keeping him behind bars for the rest of his life does anything good for anyone involved.