NEWARK, Ohio — A man accused of beating his girlfriend to death in Newark has been indicted on murder charges.
According to the Newark Police Department, Andrew Hoskinson beat and strangled 21-year-old Tala Smith near the Manning Street Bridge on March 16.
Smith was hospitalized and died days later from her injuries.
Hoskinson was originally charged with attempted murder, domestic violence and strangulation. He is now charged with one count of aggravated murder, two counts of murder and one count of strangulation, according to Licking County Common Pleas court records.
Smith's family described her as outgoing and bubbly.
“She loved drawing, that was her passion. She loved just going and having fun. She loved hanging out with her little brother,” said David Tolbert, Smith's dad.
Smith's mom, Connie Tolbert, believes Hoskinson should receive the death penalty if he is found guilty.
"That's my honest feeling. There's no reason why he gets to wake up every morning and she can't," Connie said.
She said the last two weeks having been hell.
"It's torture, a nightmare. She didn't deserve any of it. She was kind. She was sweet, she would do anything for anyone she could," Connie said.
Smith's family donated her heart, kidneys and liver which helped at least five people.
“Tala had such a loving heart. We decided to get some good out of the situation that donating her organs would be a way for other people to be saved and families out of this bad situation,” David said.
Hoskinson is scheduled to be arraigned on April 2.
📺 10TV+ is available for free: Stay up to date on what's happening in your community with a 24/7 live stream and on demand content from 10TV — available on Roku, Amazon Fire TV and Apple TV.
📧 Subscribe to the Wake Up CBUS newsletter featuring the best stories, personally curated by members of our staff and delivered via email by 6 a.m., Monday through Friday.