Soddy Daisy Shooting Victim Says Ritchie "Threatened To Blow My Head Off"

  • Tuesday, August 12, 2014

One of three people shot June 29 at Soddy Daisy testified Tuesday that Jeremy Scott Ritchie the night before had threatened "to blow my head off."

The criminal homicide case against Ritchie, accused of shooting his former girlfriend and her new family, was bound over to a grand jury by Soddy Daisy Judge Marty Lasley after a preliminary hearing.The hearing was held downtown instead of at Soddy Daisy for security reasons.

Judge Lasley ordered the defendant to be continued to be held without bond.

He said, "It's one of the few no bonds I've ever set." 

Ritchie is charged with going to his former girlfriend's new home with a shotgun and attempting to shoot her new husband, Cody Ostrum. In the process, Crystal Ostrum was shot and killed and her child and husband were injured.

Mr. Ostrum testified during the hearing that he had seen the defendant the night before the incident at a gathering to watch fireworks. 

Mr. Ostrum said, "He said he would be there at daylight to blow my head off." The family lived in a trailer park off of Dayton Pike.

He also said he received several text messages from Ritchie. Several of these messages were read from Ritchie's subpoenaed phone records. 

One message said, "You will not go to sleep until you've seen my face, you ignorant punk."

Another said, "If you want to die, stay where you are." 

Mr. Ostrum said the defendant showed up the next day and started shooting through the walls of their trailer home.

He said Ms. Ostrum was shot in the back first. He said, "I was dragging her with me then I get hit again on that second shot." 

He then saw his son get shot. He said he was yelling for everyone to "get down."

Mr. Ostrum also said he did not know his wife had passed away from her injuries until they were taken to the emergency room. They had only been married two weeks. 

Detective Dennis Waters of the Soddy Daisy Police Department testified that when he arrived to the scene, he saw bullet holes on the sides of the trailer. He also found multiple shotgun shell cartridges.

Judge Lasley said, "It appears that Mr. Ritchie...whatever he was doing, was directed probably toward Mr. Cody Ostrum. But the problem is there were four people in the trailer." 

He also said, "Intent follows the bullet."

The defendant is represented by attorney Steve Brown from the Public Defender's office.

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