Amish Teen Charged With Murder Of Amish Woman (Ohio)
I believe “shocking” is appropriate to describe this case.
A young Amish man has been charged with the murder of an Amish woman in Ohio. And according to police, he has made a confession – of a sort (more on that below).
This is out of Meigs County, Ohio, home to a tiny Amish community. From WSAZ:
MEIGS COUNTY, Ohio (WSAZ) – A man has been arrested in connection with a suspicious death first reported on Thursday, March 13.
Samuel [L.] Hochstetler was arrested on Monday, May 5, for the murder of Rosanna Kinsinger, 28, of Pomeroy, Ohio.
Kinsinger’s death was ruled suspicious on Thursday, March 13, by deputies with the Meigs County Sheriff’s Office as they responded to the scene along Dye Road in Rutland, Ohio.
Since then, Meigs County Sheriff’s Office detectives have served numerous search warrants, conducted interviews and processed evidence collected from the scene.
Detectives followed up on tips, leads, and rumors that they say helped to identify Hochstetler as a person of interest in the case.
Rosanna Kinsinger’s body had been autopsied, and results were inconclusive. But the work of the sheriff’s department has led them to charge Samuel L. Hochstetler with murder in Kinsinger’s death.
Who is Samuel L. Hochstetler?
We have a photo of Hochstetler, and a few details from various reports. This is his photo, showing him in typical Amish dress, via the Meigs County Sheriff’s Office:
First, an important note on wording. There are a number of initial stories on this out – and headlines are describing him as a “man”, but not an “Amish man”. The details about this happening in an Amish community appear in the text of these reports.
I describe him here as an “Amish teen”, because based on all details I’ve gathered, that sounds like the most accurate description.
First of all, Samuel L. Hochstetler is 18 years old. He has a typical Amish appearance and a name common among the Amish. And there is this from the Meigs County Sheriff:
Sheriff Fitch says that Hochstetler is originally from an Amish Community in Kentucky and that he moved to Meigs County sometime in the fall of 2024.
Hochstetler and Kinsinger are also described as living in the Meigs County Amish community.
At his age, it may very well be that Hochstetler has not been baptized into an Amish church. You also might wonder why he would move at that age from his home in Kentucky to such a small community.
When Amish youth in smaller communities are at an age when they’re thinking about a future wife or husband, by necessity they may have to look outside of their home communities. Perhaps that was the case here.
The Meigs County community Hochstetler moved to has been around for nearly 20 years. However, it is a tiny one – just an estimated 30 people as of last year, according to the Young Center Amish Studies community list.
I’m not going to go far into speculation, but perhaps there was a pre-existing relationship between him and the victim which led to him moving there. Or perhaps not.
Kinsinger was a decade older than Hochstetler. This puts her well beyond typical baptism age, but it’s also possible she was not baptized (I’ve spent a bit of time on this here as it relates to their status within the Amish, and how to discuss this case).
Hochstetler Makes A Confession – Of Sorts
According to one report, Hochstetler has made a confession of sorts:
Investigators said in court records that Hochstetler confessed to putting a blanket over Kinsinger’s head while the pair were in bed together. When he rolled her over, he told investigators she was not alive.
That’s not exactly the same as confessing to purposely killing Kinsinger, at least how it’s worded here.
But it doesn’t sound good. However, it might be very important for a potential defense – and determining what actually happened – in the case.
I looked up the court record referred to (which you can find here) to get the precise wording. It is somewhat more specific as to what happened.
Here is the wording of the relevant part, followed by an image of the document:
To Wit: This information is believed to be true and accurate because Samuel Hochstetler did confess to Sgt. Tracy and Lt. Campbell that he did have sexual intercourse with Rosanna Kinsinger and put a blanket over her head during and when he was finished, he rolled her over and realized she was not alive.
Is this a confession that Hochstetler intentionally murdered Kinsinger? As it’s worded, after the act of intercourse had concluded, he “realized she was not alive.” Is it possible this was an accident?
That’s not for me to judge or guess at, but based on this statement (as described in this document at least), it is not the same as Hochstetler saying he intentionally killed Kinsinger.
But – we are only getting a description of what Hochstetler told authorities. It’s likely there is a recording, or at least a more detailed record, of what Hochstetler actually told the officers. And more details of course must be known by the investigators.
In any case, more details are going to emerge at some point, with a preliminary hearing scheduled for next week. You can find Hochstetler’s court documents at the Meigs County Court website here.
The person who found Kinsinger’s body
WSAZ also spoke with Hochstetler’s housemate Mose Troyer. Additionally, Troyer is the person who found Kinsinger dead:
Mose Troyer lives in the Amish community where the victim and suspect lived. He tells WSAZ the suspect is from Kentucky and had been living with him for a few months.
Troyer says back on March 13, people in the community noticed they hadn’t seen Kinsinger all day.
Toyer says he went into her home that night and found her dead. He also says her goat was inside the home.
He says he called 911.
Troyer says this was scary when it happened in March and also disturbing to think he’d been living for weeks afterward with the person who ended up being charged. Troyer says he wishes he could ask him why.
Meigs County Sheriff Scott Fitch had this to say about Rosanna Kinsinger and the case:
“This case was such a tragedy to those who knew Rosanna. She was a beloved individual in her community.” Stated Sheriff Fitch. “Detectives have worked around the clock searching for answers and were able to get those answers. Hopefully this investigation helps bring some closure to the victim’s family and on behalf of the Sheriff’s Office we offer our deepest condolences”.
It’s from a longer statement released by the Meigs County Sheriff’s Office:
Full statement from Meigs County Sheriff’s Office (via Facebook):
The case going forward
So this is a bizarre, tragic, and sad story. And one obviously with unanswered questions.
The Amish are not immune to having murderers in their communities. However, the number of murders committed by Amish people is very low. I am aware of just three others.
A few additional details: Hochstetler was arraigned on Tuesday morning in Meigs County, and given a $1 million bond. 10% surety was not granted on the bond, so it’s a full cash bond. In other words it’s quite unlikely he’ll be able to get out on bail.
Secondly, Hochstetler is actually being held in jail in a neighboring county (Gallia County). His preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 13th.
Here is the video report from WSAZ:
*Note: post edited to remove a potentially unclear reference about degree of murder charged.
I’d like to know why he left Kentucky and moved to that smaller community in Ohio.
Was he causing problems in Kentucky? Did he move to Ohio where people may not know his problematic history(if he had one)?
Obviously, putting a blanket over her head doesn’t sound like consent.
Need more info, but so far he’s looking like he should never walk free again.
Photo
The photo is unusual as it’s not a standard arrest “mug shot.”
The thick black hair under the hat (hard to tell if it hair in the photo) looks like a wig; and it is not the same color as his beard which looks medium brown.
Since he has a bit of a beard, was he married in some way to the victim, or to someone else?
I’m curious to see what other information comes out about this case in the future. I don’t want to sit here and speculate too much without knowing more but I will say one thing, the fact that he realized she was not alive and he just left her there and didn’t say anything to anyone doesn’t look good for him.
It's called Sexual Assault...
“Samuel Hochstetler did confess to Sgt. Tracy and Lt. Campbell that he did have sexual intercourse with Rosanna Kinsinger and put a blanket over her head during and when he was finished, he rolled her over and realized she was not alive…”
Doesn’t sound like an accident to me. It appears he threw the blanket over her head during the act – as if to sneak up on her – and suffocated her in the process of sexually assaulting her. It also appears as if she was pregnant, so possibly NOT the first time. Soooo tired of the Amish making excuses and getting away with rape and assault of the women and children in their communities.
Sooo tired of the Amish?
The Amish do not “get away with things”. This perp is being held on a full cash $1 million bond. Do you talk like this about the community supporting Karmelo Anthony? The Amish are human, and God is very important to most of them and they do not rally around their criminals.
There is no report that she was pregnant.
The court document I’ve shared above references “(A) No person shall purposely, and with prior calculation and design, cause the death of another or the unlawful termination of another’s pregnancy.”
(Note the “or”).
This line appears to be the part of Ohio legal code that he is being charged under, listed here: https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-2903.01
It looks like they combine those two examples of causing death in that part of Ohio code perhaps because they are treated similarly or alike from this particular standpoint.
Thank you for covering this to find out what you can. Very sad and devastating to her family and community. I send my prayers to them.
Teen Charged in Woman’s Death
Firstly, it seems to me that Samuel Hochstetler spoke to authorities without benefit of legal counsel which is always a “red flag” to me. And with it being a rural area, are we to assume there have been many murders in this county of late?? One has to wonder if county officials are familiar with how to properly gather & interpret “evidence”. Also, how do we know Rosanna Kinsinger was pregnant at the time of her death?? My iPAD is down for repairs so I had to read this story on my phone’s tiny screen. Did I miss something in the wording?? I don’t know about the rest of your readers, but I’m more confused than a chameleon in a bag full of Skittles at this point. Think we should maybe take the “wait & see” approach with this one. Just saying . . .
Teen Charged in Woman’s Death
Firstly, it seems to me that Samuel Hochstetler spoke to authorities without benefit of legal counsel which is always a “red flag” to me. And with it being a rural area, are we to assume there have been many murders in this county of late?? One has to wonder if county officials are familiar with how to properly gather & interpret “evidence”. Also, how do we know Rosanna Kinsinger was pregnant at the time of her death?? My iPAD is down for repairs so I had to read this story on my phone’s tiny screen. Did I miss something in the wording?? I don’t know about the rest of your readers, but I’m more confused than a chameleon in a bag full of Skittles at this point. Think we should maybe take the “wait & see” approach with this one. Just saying . . .
Re: pregnancy, I think someone may have been confused by the specific code element cited, which states “no person shall purposely cause the death of another or the unlawful termination of a pregnancy”.
Right, I think that is where the confusion is coming from. I also want to avoid confusion with the separate case of Rebekah Byler, who was pregnant when she was killed.
Kentucky connection?
Is there a way to confirm that Samuel Hochstetler comes from the family in Kentucky where 5 out of 11 children died in a buggy drowning in 2020?
https://amishamerica.com/4-children-dead-1-missing-after-buggy-overturns-in-creek/
I can’t officially confirm, but a person who seems to know is saying as much in the comments of the Youtube video I did on this.
His screen name is SamByler07 – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5QCJJ3_jFE
Deep dig
Thank you for covering this to find out what you can. Very sad and devastating to her family and community. I send my prayers to them.
Amish
I’m not Amish! They get up too early. But, I love going to Lancaster County in PA. My grandmother was from there and I was raised hearing about the Amish. I’m now an avid quilter so we go there often. This will be the first year I’ll miss the Kutztown Folk Festival. As I drive from NJ to Intercourse, PA I feel the stress evaporate. It is lovely and peaceful.
And shoofly pie. Scrapple. All the wonder food I grew up on.
Geri Wolf
Criminal either way
Blanket over head sounds like non-consential intercourse I.e. rape. Either way, (other than a few remnants of the legendary “bundling” folklore), most Amish would define premarital intercourse as Sin. Plain or Amish writers would relegate “bundling” to “fancy Dutch” (non-plain) or to a few very strict, traditional (“low”) groups and would state strongly that they do not practice this and never did and that it would be immoral and wicked.
Of course, non members among the Amish are no different than non member Catholics or Lutherans or any others. They can and will fall into sin. Many Amish of today are addressing “rum schpringa” to bring accountability to a basic behavior acceptable to their church, family, and community. Some communities have the youth meet with the fathers or church leaders in a “father-son” accountability meeting.
This young man does look to be in a “low” type community. He may not be a member. He has admitted to doing wrong. The rest of the story will become known later.