Frank Stunich
Information comes from an article by Jim Reis in Pieces of the Past Volume 3 pages 58-60 and reprinted here with his permission.
How old Frank Stunich was when this murder took place is not clear. Reports have him as young as 26 and as old as 34. Stunich operated a soft drink saloon at 515 W 12th St. Newport. He and an acquaintance, a 31 year old William Ewing, were riding in a car one day when Stunich got into an argument with a bridge toll collector.
One account said Stunich wanted Ewing to help him beat up the toll collector, but Ewing refused, causing a rift between the two men. A couple of days later, Feb. 23, 1923, Stunich was in a rear room when Ewing, his brothers Earl and Elwood and a couple of their friends entered the saloon.
Ewing said they wanted whiskey and Stunich said he had none. Stunich said William Ewing was drunk and threatening him. Stunich said he got a gun to protect himself after Ewing threw a cuspidor at him, cutting Stunich in the forehead. The Ewing brothers said Stunich threatened them with a gun. In any event the gun went off and William Ewing died on the saloon floor.
Among the neighborhood people who heard of the shooting and gathered almost immediately at the saloon was Ewing's mother. Ewing lived at 523 W Eighth St. and his mother lived at 516 Hodge. Witnesses later testified Stunich was still holding the gun when Mrs. Ewing walked in and saw her son dead on the floor. She demanded an explanation. Stunich offered to give her the gun, saying, "Take it and shoot me too."
In the confusion, Stunich apparently walked out of the saloon and was seen in a daze wandering aimlessly. But the police later caught him trying to board a freight train. He was arrested and indicted for murder. He was released on bond and was soon back in the news. His wife had left him, and he was trying to find her in Xenia, Ohio. Police learned that he was armed and in the area.
The police chief and another officer spotted Stunich in a parked car and they climbed on the running board and order him out. Instead he sped away and the officer was knocked off. The chief jumped when it appeared Stunich was going to steer the car into a pole. He was captured a short time later after being shot in the face by another officer. Stunich recovered from his wounds but faced new charges of kidnapping, shooting with intent to kill and drunken driving.
Stunich's trial in Newport began on Nov 12, 1923 and the defense claimed self-defense. Prosecution witnesses said Ewing was not drunk and Stunich acted without provocation. The jury deliberated only 20 minutes before finding Stunich not guilty. Instead of being freed, however, he was returned to jail in Xenia. He had been charged and faced six months in jail. Where he went after his jail time is not known.