Murder case in Enquirer's domestic-violence series ends with 15-to-life prison sentence

A previous version of this story misstated the relationship of a family member to Marcus Reed.

A murder case that was a focus of The Enquirer’s series last month about domestic violence ended Monday with Marcus Reed going to prison for 15 years to life for the April 2020 death of Patricia Woods, a Westwood mother of two young children.

Reed, 30, received the penalty in Hamilton County Common Pleas Court from Judge Robert Ruehlman. Reed was convicted on Nov. 18 of aggravated murder, murder, having a weapon while a felon and tampering with evidence for killing Woods, 24, on April 17, 2020.

Woods and Reed had briefly dated before he shot her to death at the front door of her Westwood apartment while her two young children were inside. Woods’ son, then 5, ran to confront Reed and begged for help, which Reed refused.

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Patricia Woods, 24, a Westwood mother of two young children, was murdered April 17, 2020, in her apartment. Marcus Reed, 30, who Woods had briefly dated, shot her to death. Reed was sentenced Nov. 29 to 15 years to life in prison for aggravated murder and three other felonies. Liz Dufour/The Enquirer

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The family of Patricia Woods celebrated with cake Monday, Nov. 29 when Marcus Reed, 30, was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison for her murder April 17, 2020, at her Westwood apartment. Woods' two young children were present when Reed shot their mother. Woods' mother Tracey Jones said the cake's purple icing represents domestic violence awareness, and purple was Woods' favorite color. Family Photo

Woods' mother, Tracey Jones, has custody of her grandchildren. On Tuesday, she told The Enquirer, "I would like to say God is so good. We got justice, and my daughter can rest peacefully now."

Enquirer investigation:Legacy of domestic violence handed from one generation to the next

Woods' case was featured in a series of stories that The Enquirer published in October examining the intergenerational legacy of domestic violence and other adverse childhood experiences. According to records reviewed by The Enquirer, a member of Reed's family had been to prison twice before Reed turned 13. Before dating Woods in 2020, Reed already had two arrests for domestic violence with other partners, and both cases were dismissed.

April 2020, which saw the most stringent shutdown of the new coronavirus pandemic, was a particularly bloody month of domestic violence in Cincinnati. Six women were murdered in those 30 days, more than in all of 2019. At least three of the victims, like Woods, were killed by former or current intimate partners.

Domestic violence advocates have said the global health crisis has triggered a steep rise in violence between partners. In October, the nonprofit Ohio Domestic Violence Network reported that killings in Ohio exploded 62% during the pandemic, and in 2020, a record 15 children were among the victims.

[This article was originally published by Cincinnati Enquirer.]

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