State v. Feeney

2011 Ohio 5474
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedOctober 26, 2011
Docket25727
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 2011 Ohio 5474 (State v. Feeney) 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. Feeney, 2011 Ohio 5474 (Ohio Ct. App. 2011).

Opinion

[Cite as State v. Feeney, 2011-Ohio-5474.]

STATE OF OHIO ) IN THE COURT OF APPEALS )ss: NINTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COUNTY OF SUMMIT )

STATE OF OHIO C.A. No. 25727

Appellee

v. APPEAL FROM JUDGMENT ENTERED IN THE ROBERT J. FEENEY COURT OF COMMON PLEAS COUNTY OF SUMMIT, OHIO Appellant CASE No. CR 10 01 0251

DECISION AND JOURNAL ENTRY

Dated: October 26, 2011

CARR, Judge.

{¶1} Appellant, Robert Feeney, appeals the judgment of the Summit County Court of

Common Pleas. This Court affirms.

I.

{¶2} On January 4, 2010, Feeney appeared in the Stow Municipal Court and entered a

plea of guilty to charges of disorderly conduct and using weapons while intoxicated. As part of

the sentencing order, Feeney agreed to temporarily relinquish the firearms he had in his home.

This case arises out of law enforcement’s subsequent trip to Feeney’s home to recover the

firearms.

{¶3} On February 24, 2010, the Summit County Grand Jury indicted Feeney on one

count of illegal manufacture of drugs in violation of R.C. 2925.04(A), a felony of the second

degree; one count of illegally manufacturing or possessing explosives in violation of R.C.

2923.17(B), a felony of the second degree; one count of aggravated possession of drugs in 2

violation of R.C. 2925.11(A)(C)(1), a felony of the third degree; one count of illegal assembly or

possession of chemicals or substances for the manufacture of prohibited weapons in violation of

R.C. 2909.28(A), a felony of the fourth degree; one count of illegal cultivation of marijuana in

violation of R.C. 2925.04(A), a felony of the fifth degree; one count of unlawful possession of a

dangerous ordnance in violation of R.C. 2923.17(A), a felony of the fifth degree; one count of

possession of marijuana in violation of R.C. 2925.11(A)(C)(3), a felony of the fifth degree; two

counts of possessing criminal tools in violation of R.C. 2923.24, felonies of the fifth degree; and

one count of illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia in violation of R.C. 2925.14(C)(1), a

misdemeanor of the fourth degree. There was also a criminal forfeiture specification which

pertained to the first eight counts of the indictment.

{¶4} On March 12, 2010, Feeney filed a motion to suppress. The trial court held a

two-day hearing on the motion to suppress beginning on May 20, 2010. At the conclusion of the

hearing, the trial court judge made several statements on the record prior to denying the motion.

The trial court determined that the municipal court judge wanted “the police to check to make

sure that there are no guns in [the home] where the parents can be in any kind of harm.” The

trial court stated the police were in compliance with the court order when they checked for guns

in the bedroom and that the municipal court judge did not indicate that the order was limited to

“the six guns that [were] in the locked box.” The trial court subsequently stated, “It’s hard for

me to believe that the parents went up, whichever one, and retrieved this lockbox and didn’t see

other guns themselves in the house or didn’t know that they were *** in his room[.]” The trial

court subsequently issued a one-sentence journal entry denying the motion to suppress on June 2,

2010. 3

{¶5} On August 26, 2010, a supplemental indictment was filed which charged Feeney

with five counts of pandering sexually oriented matter involving a minor in violation of R.C.

2907.322(A)(5), felonies of the fourth degree; four counts of pandering obscenity involving a

minor in violation of R.C. 2907.321(A)(5), felonies of the fourth degree; and six counts of illegal

use of a minor in nudity oriented material or performance in violation of R.C. 2907.323(A)(3),

felonies of the fifth degree.

{¶6} On October 14, 2010, Feeney appeared in the trial court and entered a plea of no

contest to fourteen counts in the indictment. He was sentenced to an aggregate term of five years

imprisonment. Feeney was also found to be a Tier II sexually-oriented offender. The trial

court’s sentencing entry was journalized on November 30, 2010.

{¶7} Feeney filed a notice of appeal on December 14, 2010. On appeal, Feeney raises

one assignment of error.

II.

ASSIGNMENT OF ERROR

“THE TRIAL COURT ERRED WHEN IT DENIED APPELLANT’S MOTION TO SUPPRESS EVIDENCE.”

{¶8} In his sole assignment of error, Feeney argues that the trial court erred in denying

his motion to suppress. This Court disagrees.

{¶9} In support of his assignment of error, Feeney argues that the trial court erred in

denying his motion to suppress because the police did not obtain lawful consent to search his

bedroom. Feeney asserts that his parents did not give the officers consent to search the home,

but simply acquiesced to the officers’ desire to do so because they thought they had no other

choice. Feeney further argues that the search for firearms was a ruse which allowed the police to

conduct a search for narcotics. The State argues that the record indicates that the police properly 4

obtained consent from the Feeneys prior to searching the bedroom. The State further notes that

while there was contrasting testimony at the hearing, it was within the purview of the trial court

to resolve issues of credibility.

{¶10} The Supreme Court of Ohio has held:

“Appellate review of a motion to suppress presents a mixed question of law and fact. When considering a motion to suppress, the trial court assumes the role of trier of fact and is therefore in the best position to resolve factual questions and evaluate the credibility of witnesses. Consequently, an appellate court must accept the trial court’s findings of fact if they are supported by competent, credible evidence. Accepting these facts as true, the appellate court must then independently determine, without deference to the conclusion of the trial court, whether the facts satisfy the applicable legal standard.” (Internal citations omitted.) State v. Burnside, 100 Ohio St.3d 152, 2003-Ohio-5372, at ¶8.

{¶11} The Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution and Section 14, Article

I of the Ohio Constitution secure an individual’s right to be free from unreasonable searches and

seizures. “It is a ‘basic principle of Fourth Amendment law’ that searches and seizures inside a

home without a warrant are presumptively unreasonable.” Payton v. New York (1980), 445 U.S.

573, 586. When the State conducts a warrantless search, it bears the burden of demonstrating

that the search was valid. Xenia v. Wallace (1988), 37 Ohio St.3d 216, 218, citing State v.

Kessler (1978), 53 Ohio St.2d 204, 207. This Court has recognized the seven exceptions to the

general warrant requirement that have been explicitly identified by Supreme Court of Ohio.

Those exceptions are:

“(a) [a] search incident to a lawful arrest; (b) consent signifying waiver of constitutional rights; (c) the stop-and-frisk doctrine; (d) hot pursuit; (e) probable cause to search, and the presence of exigent circumstances; [] (f) the plain view doctrine[;] or (g) an administrative search[.]” (Quotations and citations omitted.). State v. Price (1999), 134 Ohio App.3d 464, 467, citing State v. Akron Airport Post No. 8975 (1985), 19 Ohio St.3d 49, 51, and Stone v. Stow (1992), 64 Ohio St.3d 156, 164. 5

{¶12} “Whether consent was voluntarily given is a question of fact to be determined

from the totality of the circumstances, and the government bears the burden of showing that

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