State v. Coleman, 2006-A-0075 (6-22-2007)

2007 Ohio 3204
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedJune 22, 2007
DocketNo. 2006-A-0075.
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 2007 Ohio 3204 (State v. Coleman, 2006-A-0075 (6-22-2007)) 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. Coleman, 2006-A-0075 (6-22-2007), 2007 Ohio 3204 (Ohio Ct. App. 2007).

Opinion

OPINION
{¶ 1} Appellant, William E. Coleman, Jr., appeals his conviction following a jury verdict finding him guilty of felonious assault, assault, and escape by the Ashtabula County Court of Common Pleas. For the reasons that follow, we affirm in part and reverse in part. *Page 2

{¶ 2} Upon graduation from Kent State University, Sara Sprague was employed by the Ashtabula County Sheriffs Office as a corrections officer in the county jail. Her duties included booking inmates and maintaining security in the jail. The jail has five floors. The booking office is on the first floor. The inmate cells are located on each of the remaining four floors. On each of those floors, there is a central common area called "the day area" with ten inmate cells located along the perimeter of the day area. Each of the cells opens into the day area.

{¶ 3} The routine at the jail is that every day from about 5:00 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., the inmates are allowed to be out of their cells and to remain in the day area where, for example, they drink coffee, eat their meals, play cards, or watch television. The inmates are locked in their cells at night from 11:30 p.m. until 5:00 a.m.

{¶ 4} Each floor of the jail with inmate cells has a centralized lock box from which the cells on that floor are opened and locked electronically. There is a button for each cell. The cells are opened from the lock box by pushing the button for that cell. Every corrections officer is assigned to a different floor each day. During the unlocking process, which begins at approximately 5:00 a.m., a second corrections officer, who would be assigned to another floor, assists the officer in the unlocking process. One officer opens the cells from the lock box, while the second officer manually opens each cell door and gives each inmate his medications and toiletries.

{¶ 5} The lock box is located in the sally port area, which is a hallway between the day area and the office area. There is a door leading into the office from the sally *Page 3 port area. Each of the floors is connected by a stairway and elevator which open to the office area on each floor.

{¶ 6} On April 1, 2006, Off. Sprague was assigned to the fourth floor. At about 5:30 a.m., she began to open the cells on that floor from the lock box. The corrections officer assisting her at that time was William Glosser, a fifteen-year veteran of the Sheriffs Office. While Off. Glosser was manually opening the cell doors, Off. Sprague was standing by the lock box. The first cell Off. Glosser opened was that of appellant. After Off. Glosser opened his cell door, appellant walked out of his cell and went directly toward the hot water spigot, which is attached to the wall near the sally port area. The inmates use this hot water for their coffee or soup. Off. Sprague was standing approximately two feet from the spigot while appellant was using it.

{¶ 7} While appellant was rinsing his cup by the spigot, Off. Sprague noticed he was watching her. He filled a cup full of hot water, then threw it at Off. Sprague. Appellant then came toward her, and she said, "Back up, Coleman." He then punched her in her face. She was immediately rendered unconscious and fell to the floor.

{¶ 8} Off. Glosser testified he was opening the cells when he heard Off. Sprague screaming. As soon as he heard her, he ran to the sally port area where she had been working. He saw appellant kick Off. Sprague in her left side and lean down and punch her in her face. Off. Glosser yelled appellant's name and ran toward him. Glosser grabbed appellant's uniform, thereby pulling him away from her.

{¶ 9} Appellant pulled away from Off. Glosser, and ran through the outer door into the office area. Off. Glosser pursued him, leaving Off. Sprague on the floor. *Page 4 Appellant headed toward the west side, where the stairway leading to the first floor is located.

{¶ 10} Off. Glosser ran after appellant in the office area to keep him from going down the stairs. He grabbed appellant, and he fought with the officer to free himself. He struck the officer with his fists in his chest, neck and face.

{¶ 11} Meanwhile, Corrections Officers Brian Dale and James Stevens were assigned to the second floor when they heard Off. Glosser yelling at appellant. They immediately ran up to the fourth floor and found appellant and Off. Glosser fighting in the office area. They assisted Off. Glosser by taking control of appellant and handcuffing him.

{¶ 12} Deputy Robert Ginn of the Sheriffs Office was assigned to take a statement from appellant. After giving him his Miranda rights, Deputy Ginn asked appellant for a statement concerning the incident. Appellant said, "Yes, I fucking did it. She was up there letting Nigers [sic] run trains on her and [ ] other reasons she knows why." This was a derogatory reference to some sexual practice allegedly engaged in between Sara and the inmates.

{¶ 13} Off. Sprague woke up moments later and found herself in a pool of her own blood. She was bleeding profusely from her nose and face, and she felt pain in her head. Other inmates in the day area helped her get up. Off. Glossser then returned to the sally port area, and assisted Off. Sprague in leaving the area to obtain medical assistance. They left the day area through the exit doors leading to the office area, and went down the elevator while appellant was being restrained by Offs. Dale and Stevens. *Page 5

{¶ 14} Off. Sprague was taken to the Ashtabula County Medical Center by ambulance. She testified hospital staff applied stitches to a laceration on her nose. She was advised she had a broken nose and a broken tooth and to follow-up with surgical treatment. Following her release from the hospital, Off. Sprague treated with a plastic surgeon Janet Blanchard, M.D.

{¶ 15} Dr. Blanchard testified that Off. Sprague had sustained a nasal fracture, which caused her nose to be deviated to the right and depressed on the left. This injury obstructed her nasal cavity on the left side. She had a laceration to her nose and bruising around her eyes and face. The doctor performed closed reduction surgery on April 10, 2006. Dr. Blanchard stated that as a result of this procedure, the nose would be swollen for about one year, and breathing would be diminished for three to four months.

{¶ 16} Dr. Blanchard examined Off. Sprague on April 14, 2006. She saw that the officer's nose would not stay in place because the bones were so fragmented. She inserted plug-type packing in the nose and applied a splint to the outside of her nose. Upon examination on May 18, 2006, Dr. Blanchard observed that Off. Sprague's nose was still depressed and crooked. The doctor said the bones in her nose were so fragmented that if she attempted a second procedure now, the nose would become even more fragmented and would not stay in place. She said that in order to make Sara's nose straight again, she would have to perform another surgery in about one year. This would require her to break the nose again, and to perform a septoplasty. Further, the scar from the laceration on her nose became hypertrophic, meaning that it *Page 6 became raised and discolored. Off.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2007 Ohio 3204, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-coleman-2006-a-0075-6-22-2007-ohioctapp-2007.