Behind Closed Bars: How a Hidden Jailhouse Romance and Departmental Blind Spots Led to a Preventable Murder-Suicide
The Tragedy on West 29th Street: Hidden Relationship and Department Oversight
Welfare Check and Discovery
Around 10 p.m. on Saturday, May 31, Lorain Police responded to a welfare-check request at a home on the 200 block of West 29th Street. Officers entered the residence and discovered 63-year-old Anthony Coonrod and 30-year-old Emily Simmons dead of “apparent” gunshot wounds. The department’s initial release described the incident as a “possible murder-suicide” and stated “no outside suspects are being sought at this time.”
Victim Histories and Confirmed Timelines
Anthony “Tony” Coonrod retired as a corrections sergeant from the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office on September 30, 2024. His retirement letter—signed by Sheriff Phil Stammitti on September 4, 2024—confirms that date as his last official day on the payroll.
Emily Simmons was released from the Lorain County Jail in mid-October 2024 after serving a misdemeanor sentence. Public social-media posts from Simmons’s friends confirm her release in October 2024 and show her reunited with family beginning in November 2024.
Previous Charges:
Acts in contempt of court
Resisting Arrest
Obstructing Official Business
Vandalism
Assault Simple
Relationship Timeline (Alleged)
It is reported that Coonrod and Simmons began a relationship while Simmons was still incarcerated. The author asserts that metadata “would show” personal messages exchanged between Coonrod and Simmons via a department-issued tablet as early as February 2024, continuing through August 2024—periods when Coonrod was still on active duty. However, because the Sheriff’s Office has never produced those logs, the existence of any such metadata remains unverified.
Because Coonrod remained on the payroll until September 30, 2024, any communications with Simmons prior to that date would have occurred while he was on active duty, potentially violating departmental policy forbidding inmate–staff relationships. After his retirement on September 30, 2024, any subsequent interactions would have taken place while he was a private citizen, though policy still bars former jailers from maintaining personal ties with ex-inmates.
Records Requests and Denials
Beginning November 2024, the author filed four formal Public Records Act requests for all tablet messages between Coonrod and Simmons (November 13, 2024; January 31, 2025; March 21, 2025; April 24, 2025). In each case, the Sheriff’s Office responded “no responsive records exist,” without citing an exemption.
Under ORC § 149.011(G), any electronic record “coming under the jurisdiction of” a public office qualifies as a “public record.” If metadata did exist on a county-issued tablet during Coonrod’s active service, it would meet that definition. As of early June 2025, the department has not produced those logs or explained their absence.
Policy and Legal Context
Department Policy: Lorain County Jail’s Inmate Correspondence rules state that “an inmate may not correspond with jail employees … contracted staff or volunteers of this facility.” Any personal or romantic relationship that begins while one party remains in custody violates this policy.
Ohio Law:
ORC § 2907.03 prohibits a corrections officer from engaging in sexual activity with an inmate under their authority; violating this statute is a third-degree felony.
ORC § 2921.44 (Dereliction of Duty) allows misdemeanor charges against a public servant who “recklessly fails to perform a duty” or otherwise violates official regulations. If an officer continued any personal contact with an inmate, that could constitute dereliction.
Prior Misconduct Cases and Oversight Mechanisms
In the months before Coonrod’s retirement, two other jail-staff misconduct cases prompted swift action:
Officer Brian Tellier (May 2023): Allegedly rammed an inmate’s head into a concrete wall, leaving the inmate partially paralyzed. That case remains under review by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the County Prosecutor.
Officer Christopher Jackson (Dec. 29, 2024): Video showed Jackson punching an inmate inside a cell after an altercation. Jackson was fired on April 21, 2025, and referred for possible dereliction charges.
After Jackson’s firing, Sheriff Jack Hall created an Inspector General position in early 2025 to investigate misconduct. Despite claims that metadata existed showing improper communications as early as February 2024, no investigation into Coonrod’s conduct occurred before May 31, 2025.
Official Responses and Oversight Review
Although the author directly raised concerns with Sheriff-Elect Jack Hall—informing him of evidence suggesting a relationship between Coonrod and Simmons—no internal investigation was ever opened. Department communications from November 2024 through April 2025 consistently denied the existence of any responsive records and made no reference to oversight action. As of early June 2025, the Sheriff’s Office has not confirmed any targeted internal review regarding this relationship. Public statements have only noted that the criminal investigation by Lorain Police is active.
Ongoing Investigation
Lorain Police detectives continue to analyze all available evidence—alleged tablet logs, social-media posts, phone records—to reconstruct the interactions between Coonrod and Simmons. Ballistics testing by the Lorain County Crime Lab is underway to confirm details of the weapon used. The Lorain County Coroner’s Office expects final autopsy and toxicology reports by mid-June, which will clarify the sequence of injuries. Until then, the case remains classified as a “possible murder-suicide.”
Conclusion
The deaths of Sgt. Anthony Coonrod and Emily Simmons lay bare a heartbreaking failure of oversight. If Coonrod’s behavior had been called out—if those tablet-message logs had been examined, and if the inappropriate relationship had been confronted—there is a real possibility that both of them might still be alive. This was a preventable tragedy: a young woman rebuilding her life after incarceration, and a veteran sergeant who could have been held to account before his actions cost two lives.
We failed Emily by denying the records that would have revealed her vulnerability. We failed Tony by ignoring red flags that deserved immediate scrutiny. And we failed our entire community by allowing two people to slip through the cracks when intervention still might have saved them. Until we ask ourselves how such documented evidence could go unaddressed—and ensure it never happens again—we cannot begin to heal.
Sources
WOIO (Cleveland 19), “Lorain Police find 63-year-old, 30-year-old dead in ‘possible murder-suicide,’” June 1, 2025.
WKYC, “Lorain police investigating suspected murder-suicide after welfare check,” June 1, 2025.
Retirement Letter (Phil R. Stammitti to Anthony L. Coonrod, Sept. 4, 2024), confirming Coonrod’s last day as Sept. 30, 2024.
Author’s Claims of Tablet-Message Metadata (alleged evidence of messages exchanged Feb.–Aug. 2024; denied by department in all records requests).
Officer Brian Tellier Incident (May 2023), under review by BCI and County Prosecutor.
Officer Christopher Jackson Incident (Dec. 29, 2024), fired April 21, 2025, referred for dereliction.
Ohio Revised Code § 149.011(G) (Public Records definition), § 149.43 (Public Records Act), § 2907.03 (Sexual Battery by Corrections Officer), § 2921.44 (Dereliction of Duty).
How exactly does the author know that the "woman was rebuilding her life after incarceration"? Her police record seems to show a long pattern of illegal activity that would suggest to me that she probably was not rebuilding her life. I do not know either of these people, i am simply asking a question. All of these blogs seem to be swayed toward corruption by law enforcement or racism. I just want to hear the facts, not the opinions of writers please.