Month: January 2025

Issue on Appeal: Child Endangerment Jury Instructions Background: Defendant-appellant Amy Rodriguez was indicted on 11 counts of child endangering in relation to her stepson, C.D. The indictment alleged that Rodriguez tortured or cruelly abused C.D. on various...

Issue on Appeal: Motion to Suppress Background: John Douglas Smith, the appellant, was a passenger in a vehicle stopped by Akron police on March 25, 2019. During the stop, Smith was informed that he could be cited for not wearing a seatbelt. When Smith refused to...

Issue on Appeal: Required Explanation for Denial of DNA Testing Background: Daverrick Lash was convicted in 2016 of aggravated murder, murder, felonious assault, and other related charges following the shooting death of William Burton at Club Fly High in Cleveland on...

Issue on Appeal: Double Jeopardy Background: Zachary A. Becker was initially arrested and charged with a misdemeanor OVI offense in February 2024. After discovering that Becker had a prior conviction that could elevate the charge to a felony, the State filed a felony...

Issue on Appeal: Providing Finding of Fact and Application of Law in a Petition for Post Conviction Relief. Background: This case involves a consolidated appeal of judgments from the Wood County Court of Common Pleas, dated May 8, 2024, concerning cases 2021-CR-388...

Issue on Appeal: Was the Defendant Informed that Pleading Guilty is a Complete Admission of Guilt Background: Waylande Juan Sanchez was charged with several offenses across four separate cases in the Ashtabula County Court, including Burglary, Possession of Drugs,...

Issue on Appeal: Sufficiency of Evidence to Support a “in the Vicinity of a Juvenile” Enhancement In this appeal, the Ohio Supreme Court addressed whether sufficient evidence was presented to support the "in the vicinity of a juvenile" enhancement in a...