Ohio Man Sentenced to Three Years for Involuntary Manslaughter in Fiancée’s Death After 13 Years

John Carter, a 36-year-old Ohio man, has been sentenced to three years in prison for involuntary manslaughter in the death of his fiancée, Katelyn Markham, who went missing over 13 years ago. The maximum sentence was handed down on Thursday, July 18, in Butler County.

Carter initially faced two counts of murder following his arrest in March 2023. However, he accepted a plea deal and pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in June, just weeks before his murder trial was set to begin, according to the Associated Press.

During the court proceedings, Markham’s family and friends wore butterfly pins in honor of the 22-year-old art student. Carter declined to make any remarks at the sentencing. “Not a day goes by that I do not think of Katelyn,” said her father, Dave Markham. “I do not feel three years is justice, not for Katelyn; not for her sister; not for me, her friends, or the entire community that has ached and grieved alongside us.”

Katelyn Markham was last seen on August 13, 2011, at her home in Fairfield, Ohio. She was weeks away from graduating from the Art Institute of Ohio-Cincinnati and planning to move to Colorado with Carter. On the night she disappeared, Carter was the last known person to see her alive and reported her missing after she failed to show up for work. Her keys, purse, and wallet were missing from her apartment, but her phone was turned off, making it impossible to track her location, reported Cincinnati Enquirer.

After a prolonged search in which Carter was actively involved, Markham’s remains were discovered in April 2013 at a dump site in Cedar Grove, Indiana, about 30 miles from her home. Her death was ruled a homicide, though the cause of death remains undetermined. A forensic anthropology report suggested her remains might have been moved from the original location.

Butler County prosecutors asserted that Carter killed his fiancée through “physical violence and by force.” Despite his guilty plea, Carter has never explained how or why he killed Markham. One witness statement claimed that Carter pleaded guilty to avoid a harsher sentence and still maintains his innocence.

“It’s not over and no, it’s not closure, but it’s a start of something else to come,” Dave Markham said. “I still do not know the whole story. Even if [Carter] writes a confession in prison, he’s gonna have to be more convincing than he’s been the past 13 years.” As the community and family continue to seek answers, Carter’s sentencing marks a significant, albeit incomplete, chapter in the long quest for justice for Katelyn Markham.