In re L.W.

2015 Ohio 267
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedJanuary 20, 2015
DocketCT2014-0033
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 2015 Ohio 267 (In re L.W.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re L.W., 2015 Ohio 267 (Ohio Ct. App. 2015).

Opinion

[Cite as In re L.W., 2015-Ohio-267.]

COURT OF APPEALS MUSKINGUM COUNTY, OHIO FIFTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

JUDGES: IN THE MATTER OF L.W. : Hon. W. Scott Gwin, P.J. : Hon. Sheila G. Farmer, J. : Hon. Craig R. Baldwin, J. : : : Case No. CT2014-0033 : : : OPINION

CHARACTER OF PROCEEDING: Civil appeal from the Muskingum County Court of Common Pleas, Juvenile Division, Case No. 21320659

JUDGMENT: Affirmed

DATE OF JUDGMENT ENTRY: January 20, 2015

APPEARANCES:

For Plaintiff-Appellee For Defendant-Appellant

D. MICHAEL MADDOX JOHN WEAVER MOLLY MARTIN 542 S. Drexel Avenue 27 North Fifth St. Bexley, OH 43209 Zanesville, OH 43702 [Cite as In re L.W., 2015-Ohio-267.]

Gwin, P.J.

{¶1} Defendant-appellant L.W., a juvenile, appeals the judgment of the

Muskingum County Court of Common Pleas, Juvenile Division, adjudicating him a

delinquent child by reason of having committed the offense of inducing panic in violation

of R.C. 2917.31(A)(1), a felony of the second degree if committed by an adult.

Facts and Procedural History

{¶2} On November 21, 2013, Detective Matt Wilhite of the Muskingum County

Sheriff's Office filed a complaint alleging that L.W. was a delinquent child pursuant to

R.C. 2151.02 due to committing the offense of Inducing Panic in violation of R.C.

2917.31(A)(1).

{¶3} The Maysville Middle and High Schools are located in separate sides of

the same building in Muskingum County, Ohio. The schools had two bomb scare threats

or incidents early in the school year. Accordingly, the schools set up heightened

surveillance measures, which included having the custodial staff check nightly for any

new graffiti and promptly removing innocuous graffiti. The schools further requested all

teachers and other school personnel do a check for any new graffiti or threats in the

restrooms of the school whenever in the area.

{¶4} The state's witnesses were Ric Roush, Director of Safety for the Maysville

School District; LaVinda Bobst, Head Custodian for the Maysville Middle and High

Schools; Annal Lee Baker, custodian at the Maysville Middle School; Zachary

Goldsmith, Intervention Specialist (teacher) at the Maysville Middle School; Ryan

Paisley, Muskingum County Sheriffs' Deputy, canine unit; Brandon Hoagland, Nathan

Hina, Gage Dillon, Quentin Hicks, and Keaton Hina, students at the Maysville Middle Muskingum County, Case No. CT2014-0033 3

School; and Matt Wilhite, Muskingum County Sheriffs' Detective Deputy. Testimony

was also presented from Fred Curry, Muskingum County Sheriffs' Detective Deputy.

The State and the defendant juvenile stipulated to the admissibility of electronic video

recordings of the second floor hallway of the Maysville Middle School on October 24,

2013, marked as State's Exhibits 11 and 12, which were shown on a large screen TV in

the courtroom and referred to repeatedly and extensively during the hearing.

{¶5} On October 24, 2013, during the early morning hours, custodian Lee

Baker was on duty and cleaned the second floor boy's restroom at the Maysville Middle

School. As a part of her duties, she did do a careful check for any new graffiti or threats

and found none.

{¶6} At 8:05 a.m., at the start of "Block One" or regular classroom instruction,

Intervention Specialist Zachary Goldsmith did a check of the second floor boy's

restroom at the Maysville Middle School and discovered the phrase "I have a bomb!"

written on a grout line on the wall behind the commode in the first or rightmost stall of

three stalls in that restroom. He notified the principal. The school was immediately put

into a "soft lockdown," whereby students were to report immediately to their classrooms

and stay in the classrooms. The soft lockdown lasted approximately ten minutes before

the decision was made by Safety Director Ric Roush to evacuate the entire school

building. Both the Middle School and High School were evacuated, the Sheriff's Office

and the fire department were called to the scene, and the canine bomb-sniffing dog unit

of the Sheriff's Office did a search of the entire building, resulting in a two-hour delay for

both schools. Muskingum County, Case No. CT2014-0033 4

{¶7} A video camera is in place outside the bathroom in question that records

everyone going into and leaving the bathroom. Detective Matt Wilhite of the Muskingum

County Sheriff’s Office, testified that between the hours of 2:00 a.m. and 8:10 a.m., the

video shows six boys going into and leaving the bathroom where the threat was found.

The first boy entered the bathroom at 7:43 a.m. The last boy that left the bathroom

before Mr. Goldsmith saw the threat was L.W. All six boys were interviewed by

Muskingum County Sheriffs' Detective Deputies and gave statements to the detectives

that same day, October 24, 2013.

{¶8} The first boy that entered the restroom was Branden Hoagland. Branden

entered at 7:43 am. Detective Wilhite eliminated Branden as a suspect as Branden

used the third of the three stalls and was witnessed by another student Nathan Hine.

Detective Wilhite believed that Branden's statement to the detectives was consistent

with the video evidence.

{¶9} Nathan Hine was eliminated as a suspect as he only used the sink, and

was only in the bathroom a brief amount of time.

{¶10} Gage Dillon testified he used the first stall, the one where the threat was

found, but that he did not see the threat. He was consistent in his statement to the

detectives, and was cooperative.

{¶11} Quentin Hicks was eliminated as a suspect as he was in the bathroom a

short amount of time and stated he did not see any paper or anything on the wall that

was a threat.

{¶12} The fifth and sixth boys that enter the bathroom are Keaton Hina and L.W.

The two boys, Keaton Hina and L.W. can be seen going into the restroom together. Muskingum County, Case No. CT2014-0033 5

L.W. remained out of sight of the camera, while Keaton went in and out of camera view

several times before leaving the restroom by himself about thirty seconds before L.W.

left the restroom. These actions were not consistent with what Keaton and Logan told

the detectives on October 24, 2013.

{¶13} When interviewed, Keaton Hina initially told Detective Wilhite that there

were several other people in the bathroom with him and L.W. and that he only saw L.W.

go to the urinal and then he walked out. Keaton said nothing about L.W.'s making an

admission. After having time to watch the video in its entirety, and realizing that there

was no one else in the bathroom besides Keaton and L.W., Detective Wilhite re-

interviewed Keaton on October 25, 2013. Keaton appeared scared, and was concerned

that his friend L.W. would get into trouble. Keaton then told Detective Wilhite, "We, we,

me and [L.W.] were walking to second period and then and (inaudible) second period

we were walking into the bathroom and then he went to the urinal and then I, I stood

behind him and then he went to the stall and then I walked out a couple minutes later he

walked out." (T. at 136). Keaton Hina testified L.W. went into the first stall. Keaton

testified he originally told a story to Detective Wilhite because he did not want L.W. to

get into trouble.

{¶14} Keaton further testified that he told the detective that, after school

resumed after the evacuation and the two-hour delay, that L.W.

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