State v. Antolini

2025 Ohio 2060
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedJune 11, 2025
DocketC-240543
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 2025 Ohio 2060 (State v. Antolini) 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
State v. Antolini, 2025 Ohio 2060 (Ohio Ct. App. 2025).

Opinion

[Cite as State v. Antolini, 2025-Ohio-2060.]

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT OF OHIO HAMILTON COUNTY, OHIO

STATE OF OHIO, : APPEAL NO. C-240543 TRIAL NO. 24/CRB/4103/B Plaintiff-Appellee, :

vs. : JUDGMENT ENTRY ANTHONY ANTOLINI, :

Defendant-Appellant. :

This cause was heard upon the appeal, the record, the briefs, and arguments. The judgment of the trial court is affirmed for the reasons set forth in the Opinion filed this date. Further, the court holds that there were reasonable grounds for this appeal, allows no penalty, and orders that costs are taxed under App.R. 24. The court further orders that 1) a copy of this Judgment with a copy of the Opinion attached constitutes the mandate, and 2) the mandate be sent to the trial court for execution under App.R. 27.

To the clerk: Enter upon the journal of the court on 6/11/2025 per order of the court.

By:_______________________ Administrative Judge [Cite as State v. Antolini, 2025-Ohio-2060.]

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT OF OHIO HAMILTON COUNTY, OHIO

STATE OF OHIO, : APPEAL NO. C-240543 TRIAL NO. 24/CRB/4103/B Plaintiff-Appellee, :

vs. : OPINION ANTHONY ANTOLINI, :

Criminal Appeal From: Hamilton County Municipal Court

Judgment Appealed From Is: Affirmed

Date of Judgment Entry on Appeal: June 11, 2025

Emily Smart Woerner, City Solicitor, William T. Horsley, Chief Prosecuting Attorney, and Susan M. Zurface, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, for Plaintiff-Appellee,

Raymond T. Faller, Hamilton County Public Defender, and David Hoffmann, Assistant Public Defender, for Defendant-Appellant. OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS

CROUSE, Judge.

{¶1} Following a jury trial, defendant-appellant Anthony Antolini was

convicted of aggravated menacing, a first-degree misdemeanor, in violation of R.C.

2903.21. He has appealed that conviction, raising two assignments of error for our

review.

{¶2} Antolini first argues that the trial court committed plain error by failing

to instruct the jury on the definition of serious physical harm and by only providing it

with the definition of physical harm. He further argues that his conviction for

aggravated menacing was not supported by sufficient evidence and was against the

manifest weight of the evidence. Finding Antolini’s arguments to be without merit, we

affirm the trial court’s judgment.

I. Factual and Procedural History

{¶3} Complaints were filed in the Hamilton County Municipal Court

charging Antolini with domestic violence and aggravated menacing. The victim of both

offenses was his wife, M.A.

{¶4} During the jury trial, M.A. testified that she and Antolini had been

married for 18 years, and that, in October of 2023, Antolini confessed to her that he

had been “sexting” with other women and that two of the women were extorting him

for money. According to M.A., Antolini ultimately admitted to engaging in similar

behavior with approximately 20 women over the course of their marriage.

{¶5} M.A. explained that Antolini’s confession was a “turning point” that

caused her to realize that both she and Antolini were unhappy and to consider “try[ing]

something different” in their marriage. She and Antolini agreed to expand their

relationship and open it to other people, although they set stipulations on this

expansion. M.A. testified that any person welcomed into their relationship could not

3 OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS

be someone that she or Antolini already knew, that the relationship with the third

party was not to be physical, and that no pictures were to be exchanged.

{¶6} M.A. testified that, despite these stipulations, she took her relationship

with a third person to the “physical side.” She stated that, on March 8, 2024, Antolini

saw a text message on her phone while she was sleeping. The message was from a

“friend” with whom she was in a relationship, and it stated that he loved her. M.A.

explained that after seeing the message, Antolini turned on the lights, threw her phone

at her, and said, “I can’t believe you are doing this to me. I might as well kill you. I

should have never woken you up. I should have just shot and killed you.” After

threatening several more times to kill her and shoot her, Antolini left for work.

{¶7} M.A. testified that she initially thought Antolini was simply making

threats and would “cool down” with time. She planned to let the situation diffuse

before talking to him, and she continued to reside in the house in a separate area from

Antolini. From March 8 until March 11, 2024, Antolini continued to make threats.

These threats included statements that he would sell the house out from under her,

take all the money out of their bank account, call her boss, and kill her. Antolini never

had a weapon in his physical possession when making these threats.

{¶8} M.A. testified that she and Antolini were both at home on March 11,

2024. They tried to talk, but their discussion only resulted in more arguing. M.A.

stated that Antolini had a telephone counseling session that afternoon. She had hoped

the counseling session would calm him down, but it did not, and Antolini continued

to threaten her after the session ended. According to M.A., Antolini told her after the

session, “I should just kill you now. I should just kill. I should shoot and kill you.”

Antolini told M.A. that he saw no point in living if she was with someone else, and that

he should just kill himself. M.A. described Antolini’s tone of voice as irrational. She

4 OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS

testified that there were multiple guns in the house, including three guns in the living

room where they were arguing. M.A. stated that Antolini never put his hands on her

or held a gun while making threats.

{¶9} M.A. testified that she left the house, drove around for a while, and

eventually went to the police station to file a report. She stated that she did not feel

safe returning home. When asked why she had finally decided to report Antolini four

days after he had begun threatening her, M.A. stated that she had begun to believe that

Antolini would follow through on his threats after his counselor had failed to calm him

down.

{¶10} The State also presented testimony from Cincinnati Police Officer

Brennan Hiatt, who took M.A.’s statement when she arrived at the police station. Hiatt

testified that M.A. was very emotional and was crying. A portion of Hiatt’s interaction

with M.A. was captured on his body-worn camera. This video footage was admitted at

trial and played for the jury. Hiatt testified that, per department policy, he had no

discretion as to whether to file the domestic-violence charge against Antolini. He did,

however, have discretion to file the aggravated-menacing charge.

{¶11} Antolini did not present any witness or take the stand.

{¶12} Outside of the jury’s presence, Antolini and the State reviewed the jury

instructions that the trial court intended to provide. The parties discussed the fact that

the domestic-violence charge required the State to prove that M.A. faced an imminent

threat of physical harm, whereas the aggravated-menacing charge required the State

to prove that M.A. faced serious physical harm that did not have to be imminent. After

this discussion, Antolini made a Crim.R. 29 motion for an acquittal, which the trial

court denied.

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2025 Ohio 2060, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-antolini-ohioctapp-2025.