A jilted woman sobbed in court during her murder retrial on Tuesday as three of her former cellmates said she shot dead her lawyer boyfriend because she was leaving her for a beauty queen.
Shayna Hubers, 27, is accused of ‘cackling’ as she shot attorney Ryan Poston six times – including once in the face – just before he was due to meet Miss Ohio 2012 Audrey Bolte for a date on October 12 of that year.
The inmates said they had overhead Hubers in jail admitting to killing the 29-year-old for revenge. Their testimony was similar to that heard at her first trial in 2015, which found her guilty of murder only for the verdict to be thrown out because one of the jurors had a prior felony conviction.
Shayna Hubers, 27, cried in court on Tuesday (pictured) during her retrial for allegedly murdering her boyfriend Ryan Poston after he started dating a beauty queen
Hubers allegedly shot Poston six times – including once in the face – at his penthouse apartment in Ohio. They are pictured together in an undated image
Donna Dooley, Holly Nivens, and Cecily Miller all told the court Hubers still showed no remorse for the killing, Cincinnati.com reported. Miller said she once cracked a joke about having given him ‘the nose job he had always wanted’.
Hubers broke down crying during a recess on Tuesday before hugging one of her attorneys. It was the most emotion she had shown in a courtroom, where she usually sits stony-faced while flashing the occasional smile at relatives she recognizes.
The former University of Kentucky psychology major, who was 21 at the time, admitted to shooting Poston at his penthouse in Ohio, but says she did so in self-defense.
They had been dating on-off for one and a half years after meeting on Facebook.
Hubers’ cellmates presented the defendant as an unrepentant murder who still believed she was right to kill Poston for dumping her for Bolte, now 29, and also a former Miss USA.
Nivens said she overheard Hubers on the phone to her mother saying Poston’s family was rich enough to buy another son.
Poston died shortly before due to meet Miss USA and Miss Ohio 2012 runner-up Audrey Bolte for a date on October 12 of that year. She is pictured at Miss USA in Las Vegas on June 3, 2012 (left) and in New York City on September 7 of that year
‘She would get on the phone and cry and sing to her mom and say there’s worse crimes than murder,’ Dooley said of the defendant.
Miller said Hubers would regularly talk about Poston in jail and joked that he was so vain he would be grateful for having been given ‘the nose job he always wanted’.
The prosecution also summoned a forensics expert, who said Poston had been shot first in the forehead, twice in the back from three feet away while still seated, and a further three times in his torso from the same distance while he lay on the floor.
Details about the dysfunctional relationship between Hubers and Poston where heard in court on Monday.
Highland Heights Police Chief Bill Birkenhauer said Hubers would log onto Poston’s Facebook and blocked women. He also said Hubers bombarded Poston with a hundred texts for every one he send after one of their regular break-ups.
Texts Birkenhauer read to the jury included several from a phone number that was not in his contacts which insulted his ability as a lawyer and accused him of lacking in sexual prowess. The number was later revealed as that of a female friend Hubers lived with.
‘Lose the beer gut and get better at your job,’ was one of the messages read out in court, according to Cincinnati.com.
Details about the dysfunctional relationship between Hubers (left) and Poston (right) where heard in court on Monday. Photos undated
Hubers is pictured watching a court hearing in 2015. The guilty verdict reached at that trial was thrown out because a juror was found to have had a previous conviction
This was found as a screenshot on Hubers phone alongside a text sent from the device saying ‘I texted Ryan this from a friend’s phone’.
After the first trial, Hubers was sentenced to 40 years in prison without the opportunity for early parole on account of showing no remorse. Campbell County Circuit Judge Fred Stine branded the killing ‘as cold-blooded an act as I’ve seen’.
A retrial was ordered after it emerged that Dave Craig, 53, who had served as a juror, had a criminal past.
Proceedings have been constantly interrupted by a loud noise from courtroom speakers intended to hide discussions between attorneys and the judge from the jury.
On Wednesday, the judge threw out a defense request to have the latest proceedings also declared a mistrial after prosecution witnesses referenced the earlier trial.
David Eldridge requested the mistrial after two witnesses called by the prosecution referenced the prior trial, which was thrown out after it was found a juror had a prior felony conviction.
The case continues.