Second Man Charged in 1995 Deaths of Mother and Son

A second man has been indicted in the 1995 deaths of an Ohio mother and her 17-month-old son, a case that investigators say was first believed to be an accidental fire before a second autopsy changed the direction of the investigation. Johnny Ball, 64, now faces murder and related charges in the deaths of Kimberly Fulton, 28, and her son Daniel.

The mother and child were found dead inside their burned mobile home in rural Prairie Township on March 5, 1995. The Ohio Attorney General’s Office announced Ball’s indictment and arrest on Sept. 16, more than three decades after the deaths.

The new arrest follows the 2025 conviction of Scott Hickman for his role in the killings. Hickman was sentenced to 20 years to life, while investigators continued pursuing additional leads.

A Fire That Did Not End the Questions

People reported that Fulton and her son were found in separate bedrooms after the mobile-home fire. Their deaths were initially considered accidental, but family members questioned the circumstances and investigators later obtained an order to exhume the bodies.

A second autopsy in May 1995 determined that both had died before the fire, according to the Ohio Attorney General’s Office and People. That finding changed the case from an apparent accidental fire into a homicide investigation.

Officials have not publicly established a motive for the killings. The renewed criminal case is therefore centered on the evidence investigators say they developed after reopening the file, not on a publicly stated explanation for why the mother and child died.

The Case Was Reopened in 2019

The Washington County Sheriff’s Office and the Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation reopened the case in 2019. That work eventually led to Hickman’s indictment and later conviction.

Even after Hickman was sentenced, investigators said their work was not finished. The attorney general’s office said continued leads resulted in Ball’s indictment.

Ball faces three counts of aggravated murder, two counts of murder, four counts of perjury, one count of obstructing justice, one count of tampering with evidence and two counts of obstructing official business. An indictment is an accusation, and Ball is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

A Second Defendant After Three Decades

The latest arrest gives the Fulton family another legal proceeding in a case that has stretched across generations. People reported that investigators described the earlier conviction as providing some additional answers while emphasizing that they would continue following new information.

Ball’s case is separate from Hickman’s completed prosecution. The charges against Ball must be resolved through the court process, and the attorney general’s office has not suggested that the indictment itself determines guilt.

For the family, the case has moved through several very different stages: an apparent fire, an exhumation and second autopsy, years without an arrest, a reopened investigation, one conviction and now a second defendant. The latest indictment does not close that history, but it marks another significant legal step 31 years after Kimberly and Daniel Fulton were found in their home.

The Latest Charges Are Not the Earlier Conviction

The two defendants occupy different legal positions. Hickman has already been convicted and sentenced, while Ball is newly charged and retains the presumption of innocence. Keeping those stages separate is especially important in an old case where one prosecution has already produced an outcome.

The attorney general’s announcement also makes clear that the latest indictment came from continued investigative work after the first conviction. It does not describe the specific evidence presented to the grand jury against Ball, so the public record at this stage supports the charges and chronology without revealing the full prosecution case.

References: Ohio Attorney General - Second Man Indicted, Arrested in 1995 Homicides of Mother, Young Son | People - Second Arrest in 1995 Fire That Killed Mom and Son

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