Man fatally shot inside vehicle, marks Toledo's first homicide of 2022
By The Blade,
2022-02-06
One person died after a shooting on Saturday night in Toledo.
Ray Gott, 58, was found inside his vehicle, shot and killed, police said. He was located around 10:45 p.m. at the intersection of Detroit and Phillips avenues and had suffered at least one gunshot wound.
Gott’s death marks the first homicide of 2022 , after a record-setting 70 homicides in Toledo in 2021.
Gott was previously sentenced to 11 years in prison for the April, 2010, shooting death of Edward Christopher Lee outside a central city apartment complex. He was released early in 2019 after serving nine years, with Lucas County Common Pleas Court Judge Stacy Cook granting him early release and placing him on five years of community control over the objections of both the victim’s family and the prosecutor’s office.
Michael Loisel, chief of the criminal division at the Lucas County Prosecutor’s Office, said during the 2019 hearing that Gott’s violent offense and prior criminal record should have precluded him from consideration. He added that Gott was previously granted early release by another judge for unlawful sexual conduct with a minor and did not follow the terms of his community control, resulting in him being sent back to prison.
At the time of the 2010 shooting, Gott was said to have retrieved a gun and began firing multiple shots — striking both Sherlon McKenzie and Mr. Lee in a leg.
As Mr. Lee lay on the ground, witnesses claimed Gott stood over Mr. Lee while he and his wife, Vonetta Lee, begged the man not to shoot. Gott fired a shot into Mr. Lee’s chest, killing him.
Gott claims he shot Mr. Lee in self-defense during a dispute involving the two families.
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