Cross was one of three people charged in the slaying of the 25-year-old Cincinnati woman who detectives say was “lured” to a Liberty Twp. park so the suspects could steal her Camaro. A fight ensued, and Milton was shot to death in the 6000 block of Spruce Creek Drive. The suspects drove away in Milton’s car, which was eventually ditched in West Chester Twp.
Cross was also indicted for aggravated robbery, grand theft of a motor vehicle, felonious assault and unlawful sexual conduct with a minor. Those charges were dismissed in exchange for the plea.
On Tuesday, Butler County Common Pleas Judge Dan Haughey sentenced Cross to a mandatory sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole after 15 years.
Kaleb Tooson, 20, of Liberty Twp. was facing the same charges in Milton’s shooting death. His trial is scheduled for Feb. 14. He was also in court Tuesday for a pre-trial hearing, but instead entered a plea of guilty to murder. His sentencing is set for Dec. 7.
Cross and Tooson have both been housed in the Butler County Jail since their arrest on $1 million bonds.
In July 2020, the third person involved — a 14-year-old Lakota East student — was sentenced to six months of home confinement for her role in the shooting. The juvenile had her six-month commitment to the Ohio Department of Youth Services suspended by Butler County Juvenile Court Judge Kathleen Romans. The girl pleaded true to the charge of tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony.
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