ABC's '20/20' features Hicks case

WILLARD — Huron County was in the national spotlight on Friday night when a local cold case was the focus of a major television event. ABC's "20/20" aired a two-hour episode on the killing of Regina Hicks and the conviction of her husband, Paul Hicks, drawing on details that local readers have followed through prior reporting by the Norwalk Reflector and Sandusky Register. The episode, titled "The Secret in the Water," revisits a case that dates back to 2001, when Regina Hicks disappeared and was later found inside her car submerged in a pond. The investigation remained unresolved for years before new evidence and witness information led to a grand jury indictment in 2025. The case was tried in Huron County Common Pleas Court, where a jury found Hicks guilty. He was later sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. The program also revisits a separate arson investigation involving Hicks, noting that "evidence, including a custom mask made to resemble his ex and a matching wig, led investigators to question the homeowner (Hicks) himself." Hicks ultimately "pleaded to a single misdemeanor count of insurance fraud, receiving a sentence of probation," and "was not convicted in connection with setting the fire at his home," according to the program. Who was interviewed? A number of local people with direct or indirect involvement with the case were featured in the program. Local podcaster Ashli Ford — who was sentenced to probation last year in Erie County on felony intimidation charges and faces new felonies in a pending Erie County mortgage fraud case — was briefly featured in the episode, in which she asserted that attention garnered by her podcast "Allegedly" kept the case in the spotlight and ultimately was the impetus for the Ohio Bureau of Investigation to pick up the case. The episode also includes interviews with Regina's cousin, Lisa Hersha; Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigations Special Agent John Saraya; along with courtroom and evidence clips of Huron County Prosecutor James Sitterley; former Huron County Sheriff Dane Howard; and co-conspirator Steven Gates, among others. Gates, who admitted to helping Hicks dispose of Regina's body and kept silent for over twenty years, was offered a proffer agreement in exchange for his testimony against Hicks. A proffer agreement allows an individual immunity in exchange for telling investigators the truth about an event, guaranteeing they can never be prosecuted for anything said during that interview. How to watch ABC describes 20/20 as "a proven leader as a long-form newsmagazine for over 45 years," featuring "true-crime mysteries, exclusive newsmaker interviews, hard-hitting investigative reports, and in-depth coverage of high-profile stories." The episode that aired Friday on ABC is available for streaming on Hulu and Disney+.