Seven years after the cancellation of a scheme to move Ohio’s death row inmates from Chillicothe Correctional Institution to Toledo, a new plan for moving has been announced.

This time, the proposed destination is Ross Correctional Institution, less than a mile from Chillicothe.

The announcement of the move emphasized that Ross is a high-security prison, whereas Chillicothe is only medium security. As in the Toledo prison, the accommodation in Ross is on one floor, so is more appropriate for death row inmates with mobility and physical difficulties than Chillicothe, where stairs separate different sections.

Jeffrey Wogenstahl, and the other death row inmates, must now try to find out what property they will be allowed to take to Ross, and how the system and rules there differ from those that they follow in Chillicothe. They also know they will have to get used to a completely new set of staff.

Already the planned timeline for the move has shifted: the original announcement cited spring, but the talk now is of a later move, possibly in summer this year.

Jeff is philosophical about the move: he will adjust to whatever is necessary while he awaits the much more important next ruling in his case. We hope that his wait for that is not long.