Jan. 9—CELINA — A Celina man’s attorney recently filed multiple motions on his behalf — including self-defense, bond modification and change of venue — in his attempted murder case.
According to court documents and a previous news release from Celina police, around 1:30 a.m. Nov. 3, officers responded to a domestic disturbance at 641 N. Sugar St. and found Christopher Mangus, 25, on the ground in front of the house with a gunshot wound. Mangus was taken to Mercer Health Hospital and then to Miami Valley Hospital for further treatment.
A witness to the incident identified Samuel Paul, 49, as the shooter. Paul is Mangus’s stepfather-in-law.
According to police reports, Paul allegedly admitted to officers that he shot Mangus and that he was trying to get Mangus out of his house because of an ongoing dispute involving Mangus and his wife, who is Paul’s stepdaughter. Paul reportedly told Mangus on Nov. 1 that if Mangus came back to the house, he would shoot him. All three individuals lived in the same home. Officers also responded to the residence Nov. 1 for a domestic disturbance.
Paul is facing two counts of attempted murder, which are first-degree felonies, and four counts of felonious assault, which are second-degree felonies, each with three-year firearm specifications. Three charges are related to Mangus, and three charges involve the witness. Paul is being held in the Mercer County Jail on a $750,000 bond.
Mercer County Public Defender Thomas Lucente submitted a request to modify the bond to own-recognizance Dec. 31.
“Mr. Paul is a 49-year-old man with no prior criminal record, deep ties to the community and a strong history of lawful behavior,” Lucente wrote in the bond modification motion. “He is also an honorably discharged veteran of the U.S. military.
“Mr. Paul has lived in Mercer County for most of his life,” Lucente continued. “He is unemployed, does not own his own home but has strong family connections, including a mother who is currently dying of cancer, and may have a job lined up if released. These ties provide significant assurance that he will appear for all future court proceedings.”
In the motion, Lucente also discussed Paul’s claim of self-defense, which he filed a separate motion for Dec. 5.
“The circumstances surrounding the charges also strongly favor granting an OR bond, as the alleged victim, Christopher A. Mangus, has a history of instigating domestic disputes and threatening behavior, and Mr. Paul acted in self-defense after being threatened and awakened by an intruder in his home,” Lucente wrote.
“That evening, Mangus, after drinking all day, unlawfully entered Mr. Paul’s home by breaking through a window while Mr. Paul was asleep. Awakened suddenly by the intrusion, Mr. Paul acted out of reasonable fear for his safety. These facts suggest Mr. Paul was not the aggressor but rather acted in defense of himself and his home.”
In the self-defense motion, Lucente wrote Mangus shoved Paul after breaking in and was threatening to harm him through a third party the previous day.
He cited a similar offense by Mangus in Shelby County in 2023 when he allegedly broke into his mother’s home in the middle of the night to get some belongings. He also noted an incident with his wife on April 19 when an argument escalated, “showcasing Mr. Mangus’s violent personality and his propensity for creating hostile and threatening situations,” Lucente wrote.
Another motion filed Dec. 3 by Lucente called for a change of venue, which would move the case outside of Mercer County, because “prejudicial pretrial publicity has created a reasonable likelihood that the defendant cannot receive a fair and impartial trial in Mercer County,” Lucente wrote, citing media coverage that started with Celina police’s initial news release.
“The press release included false and misleading statements about the incident, which have been perpetuated by multiple media outlets,” he wrote. “These inaccuracies include stating that Mr. Mangus was shot in the back and implied that he was only at the residence to retrieve items for his children, a wholly innocent objective to be sure.”
None of the motions have yet been ruled on by Judge Matthew Fox. A pretrial in the case is scheduled for Jan. 15.
Reach Charlotte Caldwell at 567-242-0451.
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