On August 20, 2026, the Ohio Supreme Court upheld the death sentence of George Brinkman, Jr., who killed a North Royalton mother and her two daughters in June, 2017.
On January 28, 2019, George Brinkman Jr. was sentenced to death by the panel of three Cuyahoga County Judges, Peter Corrigan, Timothy McCormick and Michael Shaughnessy, for the murder of Suzanne Taylor, 45, and her daughters Taylor Pifer, 21, and Kylie Pifer, 19. The judges originally handed down the three separate death sentences. Brinkman originally pleaded not guilty to the crimes, but changed his plea to guilty to the aggravated murder charges.
The bodies of three females were found dead on Sunday, June 11, 2017 on Ridge Road, just north of Wallings Road. On that day, a 911 call came in at 7:58 p.m. Suzanne Taylor was found with her daughters Taylor and Kylie Pifer, in a bedroom, according to North Royalton Police. Brinkman, the 45-year-old North Canton man was charged with six counts of aggravated murder, three counts of kidnapping, one count of aggravated burglary and three counts of offenses against a human corpse for the North Royalton murders. He was also accused of the murder of Rogell Eugene John, 71, and wife Roberta, 64, who were shot to death in their home in Lake Township that same weekend.
Brinkman’s execution was set for January 15, 2020, but in July, 2021, The Ohio Supreme Court vacated the conviction of Brinkman for aggravated murder, as he was not properly advised of his rights. Brinkman pleaded guilty to the murder of a North Royalton mother and her two daughters. The Ohio Supreme Court concluded that “we vacate Brinkman’s convictions and sentences and remand the cause to the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court for new proceedings.”
In 2022, Brinkman, again, pleaded guilty and a new death penalty was imposed. Brinkman’s attorneys filed 22 objections to the sentence. After reviewing the objections, the Ohio Supreme Court rejected them. The Court statement concluded that the aggravating circumstances “undeniably outweigh” the mitigating factors beyond a reasonable doubt. Chief Justice Sharon L. Kennedy and Justices R. Patrick DeWine, Joseph T. Deters, Daniel R. Hawkins, Patrick F. Fischer, and Megan E. Shanahan ruled for the rejection. Justice Jennifer Brunner, however, concurred and dissented in part with the majority opinion, saying she would uphold Brinkman’s conviction but reverse his death sentence.
The sentence was ordered to be carried into execution by the warden of the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility or, in his absence, by the deputy warden on Wednesday, May 1, 2030.
By GLORIA PLEVA KACIK
Contributing Writer
