Posted by Lisa Strawbridge - email
(WTOL) - When Robert Jobe turned 18 years old, he was moved from a juvenile facility to the Toledo correctional Institution. He's serving a minimum of 18 years for killing Toledo Detective Keith Dressel.
The Ohio Department of Corrections called it part of its rehabilitation plan, saying Jobe is closer to family.
Mike and Larraine Dressel, the parents of Keith Dressel, did not agree with the move. They signed a petition by Parents of Murdered Children that will be sent to the state this summer. It has 2,000 signatures already.
Fellow officers of Detective Dressel wrote the warden, and Jobe has since been moved to Mansfield. Mike and Larraine plan to continue their work, however. "Our situation has been fixed," Larraine said. "He's been moved. But there are others who need help with this."
Parents of Murdered Children say there are nearly a dozen more local families who want the same outcome that the Dressels got. "Get them away from the victims' families. Let them breathe. Let them live," said Larraine.
Talking about how she felt when she heard Jobe was coming back to Toledo, Lorraine said, "I don't think people realize it. I didn't realize it. I didn't think there would be any way in the world that guy would end up back here."
The Dressels both say the move hindered their ability to heal. "You think about what happened, what he did. And where is he at? He's right there," Mike said.
Larraine expressed concern that if Jobe were to escape while he was in imprisoned in Toledo, he was already in an area where he knew people and places.
Also, she was not happy it was all done so his family could visit him more often. "I can't visit my son ever again, ever. That hurt," she said.
The Department of Corrections says it will only take transfer requests from a warden and consider them on a case by case basis.
