Overview
- The emergency physician, who was set for a Hamilton County arraignment Tuesday, was reported dead in Trenton days earlier in what prosecutors described in court as a suicide.
- A grand jury had indicted Francis J. Kearse III on counts of compelling prostitution, compelling prostitution involving a minor, trafficking in persons, and importuning.
- Investigators say he used Snapchat to pose as a sugar daddy and gave a 16-year-old gift cards, $15, and two vape pens in exchange for sex.
- He was arrested March 11 and released on his own recognizance before Judge Christopher McDowell ordered a re-arrest over the cashless bond.
- The dismissal ends the criminal case and highlights friction over cashless bonds in cases alleging exploitation of minors in Ohio, where the age of consent is 16.