Newark man to spend life in prison for killing, burying mother

NEWARK, Ohio (WCMH) -- A Licking County man was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of killing his mother and then burying her body in the backyard of their home.

David A. Perrine, 41, was found guilty last week of aggravated murder, murder, tampering with evidence, abuse of a corpse, and two counts of theft.

In addition to the mandatory life in prison without parole sentence for the aggravated murder charge, Perrine was also given six additional years in prison for the other charges; those sentences will be served concurrently with the life sentence.

On Dec. 23, 2022, Licking County Sheriff's deputies performed a wellness check for 67-year-old Debra Perrine at her home on Darlene Drive in Newark after family members said they hadn't heard from her in over a week.

When deputies entered the house, they found Debra's son David inside with another man. Deputies found no sign of the woman but did see evidence of foul play and an attempt to remove evidence. Perrine was then arrested for a pretrial bond violation, based on charges of grand theft of a vehicle, robbery, and felony theft.

Less than a week later, on Dec. 29, sheriff's detectives and investigators with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation found Debra Perrine's body buried in the backyard of the home; the sheriff's office said the body had "obvious signs of trauma."

Perrine was indicted in his mother's death by a grand jury in May 2023.