YOUNGSTOWN ‒ An Alliance man could spend the rest of his life in prison for repeatedly stabbing and killing 44-year-old Gena M. Wade of the Beloit area in October 2023.
Nicholas Cunningham, 34, won't be eligible for parole until he serves at least 25 years.
Mahoning County Common Pleas Judge Anthony Donofrio pushed back the parole eligibility recommended as part of a plea agreement between county Prosecutor Lynn A. Maro and defense attorney Michael O. Kivlighan. Cunningham pleaded guilty to aggravated murder on Aug. 7, eliminating the possibility of appeal.
The prosecution and defense attorneys had recommended a sentence of 20 years to life.
But Donofrio said he could not accept the 20-year parole eligibility because of the threats and pain Cunningham, an acquaintance of Wade's family, had inflicted on them.
Donofrio said Cunningham killed Wade because she was trying to protect her niece from his "sick, demented fantasy" of pursuing a relationship with the girl, who was not yet a teen. The judge said Cunningham took Wade away from her family in the most horrifying and cruel way. He said Cunningham had threated to kill other family members.
"I don't doubt that if you had the opportunity to kill them too, you would have," Donofrio said.
Michelle Hively of Canton, sister of Gena Wade, said her family will never be whole again.
"Losing Gena was life-altering in every way. My mom lost a daughter, my daughter lost her aunt. My niece lost her mom and my brothers lost a sister. So many roles are left unfilled due to this loss. Every holiday, every birthday, every wedding," Hively said.
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Hively, of Canton, said she lost part of herself when her sister died. She said they were close.
"I miss her smile. I miss her contagious laugh. I miss how she was always in a good mood first thing in the morning," Hively said.
Hively's 15-year-old daughter, Suri A. Myers, said that since her aunt died, she's had to learn to live with grief and the reality that someone she loved was taken from her. She described Wade as her babysitter, confidante and safe person.
She said she was 10 years old when Cunningham because obsessed with her.
"I was a child that should have been protected, allowed to grow without fear and given the opportunity to have a normal childhood. Instead, I was robbed of that," Myers said. "Being 11 years old and seeing someone say I will get revenge on your family for taking away the one thing I love most is one of the most terrifying things a little girl could experience. The defendant's inappropriate thoughts and behaviors towards me were not something that a child should ever have to experience."
