SUMMIT COUNTY, Ohio — A grieving Minnesota family is seeking justice after the alleged actions of an Akron man.
“I fear for many, many people who are potentially in danger because of a system that handles people in this way,” said Janet Peterson, the mom of Ryan Peterson, who was allegedly killed by Franklin White of Akron.
On August 12, 2022, Janet said she learned her son had been killed.
To make matters even more tragic, Peterson said her daughter-in-law Kassie watched the murder unfold.
“She will never be able to be completely whole,” said Peterson.
Now, this grieving family and their attorney, Peter Pattakos, are calling for justice after they alleged Franklin White of Akron used a battering ram to break down a door to 32-year-old Ryan Peterson’s home and brutally stab him to death.
“The fact that no one warned Kassie Peterson and her family that this man was on the loose and his whereabouts were unknown directly caused the death of her husband,” said Pattakos, who is with The Pattakos Law Firm, LLC.
In a new lawsuit filed in Summit County Court of Common Pleas, the family is suing Summit County, Ohio, the Oriana House and Community Support Services, claiming they were responsible for the electronic monitoring of White at the time.
“These organizations failed to control, supervise and warn about known dangers presented by this defendant who was under their supervision,” said Pattakos.
The family’s attorney claimed White had been staying at the Edgerton Group Home operated by Community Support Services when he cut off his GPS monitor device and drove more than 11 hours to Minneapolis, where he killed Ryan.
"Officers arrived and identified a male inside the house who had been fatally stabbed,” said Minneapolis Police Sgt. Garrett Parten on August 12, 2022.
At the time of his escape, Pattakos said White was under the maximum level of court-ordered supervision due to pending charges after he broke into Kassie’s parents' Akron home three times in February of 2022 to get in contact with Kassie, his former Firestone High School classmate.
That same month before the break-in, the lawsuit revealed White sent Kassie an email, with his picture attached, stating he was sorry to be random and would love to catch up.
The lawsuit alleged Kassie did not respond.
Months after White broke into Kassie’s parents' home, the lawsuit claimed White violated his no-contact order by sending an electronic message to Kassie in June 2022.
That’s when the lawsuit stated Kassie reported this to Summit County Prosecutor’s Office, who advised she seek a protection order against White for her home in Minnesota.
“This man was known to have severe mental illness, severe psychosis,” said Pattakos.
News 5 reached out to Community Support Services and Oriana House, and they declined to comment.
Meanwhile, Summit County Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement, “Our hearts go out to the family of Ryan Peterson. However, with pending litigation filed against the county, we cannot comment further end quote.”
“We need something done that will reflect, reflect accountability by these defendants to this family who have suffered,” said Pattakos.
News 5 also dug through Minnesota court records and found white has been charged with second-degree murder and could face 40 years in prison if found guilty.
