State v. Black

911 N.E.2d 309, 181 Ohio App. 3d 821, 2009 Ohio 1629
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedApril 3, 2009
DocketNo. 22699.
StatusPublished
Cited by25 cases

This text of 911 N.E.2d 309 (State v. Black) 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. Black, 911 N.E.2d 309, 181 Ohio App. 3d 821, 2009 Ohio 1629 (Ohio Ct. App. 2009).

Opinion

Donovan, Presiding Judge.

{¶ 1} Defendant-appellant, Timothy J. Black, appeals his conviction and sentence for one count of receiving stolen property, in violation of R.C. 2913.51(A), a felony of the fourth degree.

{¶ 2} On January 10, 2008, Black was charged by indictment with one count of receiving stolen property. Black was arraigned on January 15, 2008, stood mute, and the trial court entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf.

{¶ 3} Following a two-day jury trial that ended on March 6, 2008, Black was found guilty of receiving stolen property. On March 27, 2008, the trial court sentenced Black to 14 months’ imprisonment. The court also ordered Black to pay $50 in restitution, as well as court costs. Black filed a timely notice of appeal with this court on April 8, 2008.

I

{¶ 4} The incident that forms the basis for this appeal occurred on the evening of December 6, 2007, when a silver Chrysler 300-C was stolen from the Talbott Tower parking garage located at 118 West First Street in downtown Dayton, Ohio. The vehicle’s owner, Saundra McLemore, arrived at the garage at *827 approximately 4:45 p.m. A valet parked McLemore’s vehicle on the first floor of the garage beside the valet station. The valet left the keys in the vehicle and the doors unlocked, pursuant to the garage’s standard operating procedure. After she left her vehicle, McLemore went to her office, which was located in the Talbott Tower.

{¶ 5} Shortly thereafter, a valet working at the garage, James Daniels, testified that he observed a dark-skinned black male dressed in a tan jacket, a gray “hoodie” sweatshirt, and dark gray pants walk by the entrance to the garage just before 6:00 p.m. Daniels testified that a short time after 6:00 p.m., he noticed the same individual as he walked by the entrance to the garage a second time because he looked “inside the garage sort of suspiciously.” Daniels testified that although he was unable to discern the individual’s facial features, he specifically remembered the clothes the man was wearing. Daniels also testified that the hood on the individual’s sweatshirt was pulled down.

{¶ 6} At approximately 7:00 p.m., Daniels testified that he briefly left his post at the valet station to 'retrieve another vehicle from the basement. When he returned to the valet station, he noticed that the brake lights on McLemore’s vehicle were illuminated. Daniels testified that he did not believe that to be important because McLemore’s son was known to borrow his mother’s car occasionally.

{¶ 7} Daniels testified that he had to leave the valet station again, and when he returned, he observed McLemore’s vehicle being backed out of its parking space. Daniels testified that although the driver of the vehicle had pulled the sweatshirt’s hood over his head in an attempt to hide his face, he recognized the individual as the man he had observed earlier who was wearing the tan jacket with a gray hoodie. Daniels then watched as the individual drove out of the garage at a high rate of speed. When the police arrived, Daniels described the perpetrator as a black male dressed in a tan jacket, a gray hoodie sweatshirt, and dark gray pants. Dayton Police Officer Gordon Cairns testified that after speaking with Daniels and McLemore, he put out a broadcast containing a description of the stolen vehicle, as well as a description of the clothing worn by the individual suspected of stealing the vehicle.

{¶ 8} At approximately 11:15 p.m. the same night, Dayton Police Officers Andrew Zecchini and his partner observed a vehicle matching the stolen vehicle’s description at the intersection of West Grand Avenue and Forest Avenue in Dayton, Ohio. Officer Zecchini also observed two individuals riding in the vehicle. The passenger in the stolen vehicle was a black male dressed in a tan jacket and a gray hoodie sweatshirt, which matched the clothing description provided by Officer Cairns. Officer Zecchini and his partner initiated a stop of the vehicle after it was driven into a parking lot on Grafton Avenue. Officer *828 Zecchini testified that after the vehicle entered the lot, he activated the cruiser’s overhead lights and spotlights. Officer Zecchini testified that he then ordered the two occupants to show their hands and get out of the vehicle. The occupants of the vehicle did not comply with Officer Zecchini’s commands and instead, remained in the vehicle apparently talking and listening to music. Thus, Officer Zecchini and his partner physically removed both men from the vehicle and placed them under arrest. The individual who was removed from the passenger side and arrested was later identified as the appellant, Black. Officer Zecchini testified that the clothes worn by Black matched the description provided by the parking lot attendant, Daniels, who had observed the individual who stole the vehicle.

{¶ 9} At trial, Black testified on his own behalf. Black asserted that he was only a passenger in the vehicle and was unaware that it had been stolen. Despite his testimony to the contrary, Black was convicted of receiving stolen property and sentenced accordingly. It is from this judgment that Black now appeals.

II

{¶ 10} Black’s first assignment of error is as follows:

{¶ 11} “The trial court erred in allowing evidence and argument that Mr. Black stole the motor vehicle at issue when Mr. Black was charged only with receiving stolen property.”

{¶ 12} In his first assignment, Black contends that the trial court abused its discretion when it allowed the state to introduce evidence that Black stole McLemore’s vehicle. Black argues that since he was charged only with receiving stolen property, he was unfairly prejudiced by the admission of irrelevant evidence that sought to establish that he was the individual who stole the vehicle from the parking garage.

{¶ 13} The admission or exclusion of evidence rests soundly within the trial court’s discretion. State v. Sage (1987), 31 Ohio St.3d 173, 31 OBR 375, 510 N.E.2d 343, paragraph two of the syllabus. The trial court’s decision concerning the admission or exclusion of evidence will not be reversed absent an abuse of that discretion. Id. at 182, 31 OBR 375, 510 N.E.2d 343. An abuse of discretion “connotes more than an error of law or judgment; it implies that the court’s attitude is unreasonable, arbitrary, or unconscionable.” State v. Adams (1980), 62 Ohio St.2d 151, 157, 16 O.O.3d 169, 404 N.E.2d 144. When applying the abuse-of-discretion standard, an appellate court may not substitute its judgment for that of the trial court. Pons v. Ohio State Med. Bd. (1993), 66 Ohio St.3d 619, 621, 614 N.E.2d 748.

*829 {¶ 14} It should be noted that although Black objected to the state’s assertion during opening statements that Black stole McLemore’s vehicle, he did not object to the introduction of that evidence during trial.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

State v. Heard
2022 Ohio 2266 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2022)
State v. Cochran
2020 Ohio 3054 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2020)
State v. Schnabel
2019 Ohio 3024 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2019)
State v. Remy
2018 Ohio 2856 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2018)
State v. Russell
2018 Ohio 518 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2018)
State v. Wuensch
2017 Ohio 9272 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2017)
State v. McDonald
2017 Ohio 8496 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2017)
State v. Moody
2016 Ohio 8366 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2016)
Saint Paris v. Galluzzo
2015 Ohio 3385 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2015)
State v. Reynolds
2014 Ohio 3642 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2014)
State v. Cullins
2014 Ohio 2202 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2014)
State v. Barker
2014 Ohio 1269 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2014)
State v. Davis
2014 Ohio 624 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2014)
State v. Hinton
2014 Ohio 490 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2014)
State v. Tatum
2014 Ohio 386 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2014)
State v. Renner
2013 Ohio 5463 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2013)
State v. Ferguson
2013 Ohio 4798 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2013)
State v. Taylor
2013 Ohio 186 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2013)
State v. Brown
2012 Ohio 1848 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2012)
State v. Sammons
2011 Ohio 4296 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2011)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
911 N.E.2d 309, 181 Ohio App. 3d 821, 2009 Ohio 1629, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-black-ohioctapp-2009.