Man accused in deaths of 2 women faces trial

3/12/2010

A Toledo man charged in the deaths of two women is to go to trial May 4 in Lucas County Common Pleas Court.

Rodney Dean Wahl, Sr., 39, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to two counts of aggravated murder and one count of murder. If convicted, he would face life in prison. Judge Linda Jennings ordered him held on $5 million bond.

Wahl is charged in the strangulation death of Jennifer Shively, 26, who was found Aug. 25 in an Ottawa County marina. He also faces charges for the Sept. 11 death of Ursula Graves, 42, who died from a combination of alcohol and heroin.

A mother of five, Shively went missing Aug. 15. Her body was found 10 days later in 3 feet of water at Lamberjack's Marina in Oak Harbor, miles away from where she was last seen.

An autopsy revealed she died of strangulation before she was weighted by two concrete blocks and hidden in the water. The mother of six children, Ms. Graves died at about 5 p.m. Sept. 11 as a result of alcohol and heroin. Authorities identified her as a potential witness in Shively case.