Investigators say Ericka Kramer was killed before flames consumed her rural home.
ANSONIA, Ohio — Ericka Michele Kramer, a 50-year-old cheer coach remembered for lifting up students, was found dead inside her burning home April 10 in a case that now centers on a volunteer firefighter accused of killing her.
Kramer’s death has moved from a fire response to a murder and arson prosecution in Darke County Common Pleas Court. Peyton W. Beam, 22, of rural Ansonia, is accused of shooting Kramer, setting her home on fire and then responding to the scene with the Ansonia Fire Department. He faces aggravated murder, aggravated arson, tampering with evidence and abuse of a corpse charges. His lawyer has disputed the prosecution’s account and pointed to Beam’s lack of a criminal record.
Before the case became a court file, Kramer was best known in Ansonia as Coach Ericka. The Ansonia Athletic Department said she was the varsity cheerleading head coach and wrote that she would be deeply missed. Her obituary said she had an unbreakable bond with her daughter, Abigail, and had spent years giving herself to others. It described her work with young people as more than coaching, saying she encouraged and inspired them. Kramer was born in Union City, Indiana, in 1976 and lived in Ansonia, a small village in western Ohio near the Indiana line. Her husband, David W. Kramer, died in 2022.
The emergency call came in at 12:29 p.m. on April 10 from the 2700 block of Zumbrum Road, northwest of the village. Fire crews arrived and found the home engulfed. During the response, firefighters found the body of an adult woman inside. Sheriff Mark Whittaker said Kramer had been in the home minutes before the fire and that investigators first identified her based on a high degree of probability before forensic work continued. Her body was sent to the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office. Darke County Coroner Dr. Susan Brown ruled the manner of death a homicide, turning the fire scene into a crime scene.
Two days later, detectives arrested Beam, who authorities said was connected to both the death and the fire. Prosecutors later told a judge that Kramer was shot twice in the back and twice in the head. They said her body was drenched in what appeared to be gasoline and that the house was set on fire to cover up the crime. The same account said Beam was then called out as a firefighter. Prosecutors said he appeared at the scene “under the guise of being a firefighter” and was among the first to reach the burning home. Authorities have not publicly released a motive.
The accusation drew added attention because of the relationship between Beam and Kramer. In court, defense attorney John H. Rion said Beam had worked for Kramer for about seven years, performing farm work, and viewed her as a second mother. Rion said Beam would not hurt someone with whom he had that kind of history. He also said the defense wanted to see more than inference. “We’d be very interested in ballistics in this case, very interested in any evidence other than inference,” Rion said. Beam appeared by video during an early hearing and shook his head as prosecutors described their case.
Local reporting later added another detail that deepened the unusual nature of the response. Sheriff Whittaker said Beam was aboard one of the first arriving Ansonia fire engines and entered the burning house with a hose, along with another firefighter, to fight the fire. Firefighters suspected foul play soon after Kramer’s body was found, Whittaker said. Deputies, a coroner’s investigator and the Ohio State Fire Marshal’s Office responded to the scene. Investigators have not publicly said what evidence caused them to focus on Beam or how they traced the alleged shooting and arson sequence before his arrest.
At the first bond hearing, prosecutors asked for a $20 million bond. The defense asked that Beam be released without bond. Judge Travis Fliehman set bond at $5 million, cash or surety. The court said Beam could post 10% in cash, or $500,000, if release were granted under those terms. Beam remained in the Darke County Jail. Prosecutors later added third-degree tampering with evidence and abuse of a corpse charges. During a later hearing, Fliehman said there was no new information before the court that changed the earlier bond decision and kept the bond at $5 million.
The Ansonia Fire Department said details were limited because the investigation was ongoing and said its thoughts were with Kramer’s family. The statement came as residents were trying to absorb two facts at once: a coach was dead, and one of the people accused in the case had been part of the emergency response meant to help. The department did not publicly describe Beam’s current status in detail in the reports reviewed, but court statements identified him as both a volunteer firefighter and certified fireman.
Kramer’s funeral notice said a celebration of life was scheduled for April 18 at Tribute Funeral Homes in Greenville. Community tributes focused on her warmth, generosity and role in Ansonia Schools. Those memories stand apart from the allegations in court, where prosecutors are building a case around ballistics, fire evidence, scene timing and Beam’s alleged return to the property. The defense has signaled it will challenge whether the evidence directly ties him to the killing.
As of Wednesday, May 6, the case remains active, with Beam held on $5 million bond and no public trial date announced. Kramer’s death is now both a community loss and a pending criminal prosecution, with the next answers expected through court filings and hearings.
Author note: Last updated May 6, 2026.