Inset, left to right: Theodore "Ted" Block (E.C. Nurre Funeral Homes) and Cole Hornsby (Hamilton County Sheriff's Office). Background: The area in Ohio where Hornsby killed Block in April 2024 (Google Maps).
A 26-year-old man in Ohio may spend the rest of his life behind bars for killing his next-door neighbor, shooting the 40-year-old grandfather in the back 12 times after calling the older man a "b—", then claiming he was acting in self-defense, court records show.
Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge Jennifer Branch on Thursday ordered Cole Hornsby to serve the maximum sentence of 24 years to life in a state correctional facility for the 2024 slaying of Theodore "Ted" Block. Branch handed down the sentence after a jury found Hornsby guilty on one count each of murder and tampering with evidence.
According to court documents, police and emergency medical personnel on the night of April 16, 2024, responded to a 911 call about a shooting that took place at a residence in the 5000 block of Kilby Road in Cincinnati. Upon arriving at the address, first responders located the victim, later identified as Block, "lying on the ground deceased."
"Witnesses advised Cole Hornsby approached [Block] and began having a verbal dispute," a detective wrote in a probable cause affidavit. "A witness advised Cole Hornsby told [Block], 'take this b—' and proceeded to pull a gun and shoot [Block] multiple times."
The Cincinnati Enquirer reported that on the night of the shooting, Hornsby had been firing a large muzzleloader rifle off his porch. Block, who was babysitting his young grandchildren with his wife that night, reportedly went to Hornsby's home and told him to stop firing the weapon. An argument ensued and Block threatened to call the police before returning home. As Block was walking back to his house, Hornsby shot him in the back a total of 12 times.
At trial, a forensic expert testified that while Block was lying face down on the ground, Hornsby fired a shot into the middle of his back, according to the Enquirer. Hornsby then hid the firearm in his shed.
Block's wife, Krissy Block, watched the shooting take place and testified at Hornsby's trial, Newport, Kentucky-based Fox affiliate WXIX reported.
Alyiah Block, the victim's daughter, spoke during Thursday's sentencing hearing, imploring the court to impose the maximum sentence.
"Cole Hornsby, a man who should stay behind bars for as long as his heart beats," she said, according to Cincinnati-based CBS and CW affiliate WKRC. "A coward of a man who took an innocent life for no reason at all but his own pleasure. A man who can't admit that his decisions he made that night were never an act of self-defense, but him firing on an unarmed, non-threatening man that was only trying to protect his family from the psychopath next door."
Hornsby's defense attorney reportedly sought a sentence of two years followed by probation.
Hamilton County Prosecutor Connie Pillich praised Branch's sentencing decision.
"I appreciate the judge's careful consideration of this case and decision to impose the maximum allowed sentence, as my office requested," she said in a statement to WKRC. "This was a tragic and preventable killing. Ted Block should be alive today. While no sentence can bring him back, this ensures the community will be safe from Cole Hornsby for as long as possible."
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