Accused murderer appears in court

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

There are new developments but still no trial dates in the case of a man charged with killing his girlfriend at her Van Wert home last September.

During a pre-trial conference held in Van Wert County Common Pleas Court on Tuesday, Judge Martin Burchfield ruled on a defense request to suppress certain evidence against Ryan Houser.

Judge Burchfield denied a motion to suppress statements made by Houser on five different occasions when he was interviewed or was in the presence of Van Wert police officers between September 5-8. Houser claimed he was never given a Miranda warning during interviews with law enforcement officers. However, Judge Burchfield granted a motion to suppress an October 19 interview that took place at the Mercer County Jail, noting Houser was not given a Miranda advisement and was not specifically advised of his right to counsel.

“The October 19, 2023, interview at the Mercer County Jail was a custodial interrogation and required a Miranda advisement,” Burchfield wrote in his ruling. “Merely telling the Defendant he was free to leave or terminate the interview is not enough. It is not relevant that he was detained on separate charges.”

Houser, 38, with addresses in Rockford and Celina, is is facing four charges, aggravated murder, an unclassified felony; murder, an unclassified felony; possessing a weapon under disability, a third degree felony, and tampering with evidence, a third degree felony.

The charges are tied to the death of Barbara Ganger, 43, of Van Wert. Her body was discovered on September 4 of last year, after the Van Wert Police Department was asked to do a welfare check at her residence at Van Wert West Apartments on W. Main St.

Officers discovered she had been shot twice, once in the stomach area and once in the head.

Houser was arrested and jailed in Mercer County on September 8 on unrelated charges of having a weapon under disability and a probation/parole violation. Court records from Mercer County show no trial dates have been established for that case. Houser was indicted by a Van Wert County grand jury November 2, and pleaded not guilty during an arraignment hearing held several days later. Judge Burchfield set bond was at $1 million. A request made in November to modify his bond was denied.

Houser’s local trial was originally scheduled for April 15-19 but was delayed due a change in legal counsel, the May suppression hearing, another change of legal counsel and a series of motions.