State v. Gaines, 91179 (2-12-2009)

2009 Ohio 622
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedFebruary 12, 2009
DocketNo. 91179.
StatusUnpublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 2009 Ohio 622 (State v. Gaines, 91179 (2-12-2009)) 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. Gaines, 91179 (2-12-2009), 2009 Ohio 622 (Ohio Ct. App. 2009).

Opinion

JOURNAL ENTRY AND OPINION *Page 3
{¶ 1} Appellant, Michael Gaines, brings this appeal challenging his conviction for rape. After a thorough review of the record, and for the reasons set forth below, we affirm.

{¶ 2} On September 12, 2007, a Cuyahoga County Grand Jury indicted appellant on one count of rape in violation of R.C. 2907.02(A)(2), and one count of rape in violation of R.C. 2907.02(A)(1)(c). On November 19, 2007, defense counsel filed timely discovery requests, including a motion to preserve and produce substance for independent laboratory analysis at the state's expense, which the court granted. On December 24, 2007, the record reflects a journal entry that indicates "the relevant evidence samples, specifically, the rectal swab (item 1.4) and known standard from Michael Gaines (item 3.1) from BCI I Laboratory number 05-3391 be shipped forthwith with a completed chain of custody (signed and dated) to DNA Diagnostics Center ***."

{¶ 3} On February 21, 2008, appellant filed a motion in limine to exclude the DNA evidence the state sought to introduce at trial. Appellant argued that because independent testing concluded that no amplifiable DNA was obtained from the evidence sample provided by the state's Bureau of Criminal Investigation, he could not defend against the charges of rape.

{¶ 4} At the start of trial, appellant again raised the issue from his motion in limine. The trial court rejected the argument, and the case proceeded before a jury on February 22, 2008. *Page 4

{¶ 5} The state presented five witnesses, including S.G.1 ("the victim"), Lyneeda Dobbins, Det. Michael Kovach, Melissa Zielaskiewicz, and Elva Thompson. The following testimony from the victim and her cousin, Dobbins, was adduced at trial.

{¶ 6} The victim and Dobbins were at Dobbins's residence on May 3, 2005. Three males came to the house after midnight; these males were appellant, whose nickname is "June Bug," a male known only as "Lee Lee," and another unidentified male. The victim and the three males drank shots of Jack Daniels together until approximately 3:00 a.m. The four of them, not including Dobbins, then left the house in order to purchase another bottle of liquor. The victim testified that they stopped at several bars that morning before arriving at Libby's, near 41st Street and Clark, where they drank from about 5:00 a.m. until 5:30 a.m.

{¶ 7} The victim testified that, although she was "not highly intoxicated at all," she does not remember anything after drinking one shot of Jack Daniels at Libby's. She testified that after she drank the shot, she has no memory of leaving the bar, where she went, or what happened until she woke up later that morning in a bed with Lee Lee. The victim testified that her underwear and pants were off and that she was dressed in someone else's pants, which were several sizes too big for her. *Page 5

{¶ 8} The victim testified that she dressed and located appellant in another part of the house. Appellant told her that she had had sex with Lee Lee. She became visibly upset, and she testified she felt ashamed that she had had sex with someone she did not know. She testified that appellant drove her to Dobbins's home.

{¶ 9} Once at her cousin's home, the victim told Dobbins what had happened to her. Dobbins called 911, and an ambulance transported the victim to MetroHealth Medical Center. Dobbins called appellant on his cell phone. He denied that he had done anything to the victim, but stated that something had occurred between her and Lee Lee.

{¶ 10} At the hospital, a rape kit was performed on the victim, including vaginal and rectal swabs. Her underwear and pants were placed in an evidence bag. The medical report on the victim stated that she had bruises on her neck and back.

{¶ 11} Nurse Elva Thompson assisted the doctor who performed the rape kit on the victim. She testified that, although a doctor performed the examination, her role was to collect the swabs and smears and seal them in evidence envelopes.

{¶ 12} Det. Kovach testified that he conducted the investigation in this case. His investigation led to the identification of appellant as a suspect. Det. Kovach testified that on September 3, 2007, appellant cooperated with police by voluntarily giving four buccal swabs. *Page 6

{¶ 13} Melissa Zielaskiewicz, a forensic scientist with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification, testified that semen was present on the victim's clothing and on the vaginal swabs and that seminal fluid, which contains sperm, was present on the rectal swabs in the rape kit. She testified that she was able to make a partial profile on a male. Zielaskiewicz testified that her investigation lead her to conclude that the DNA from the rectal swab matched the DNA from appellant's buccal swab.

{¶ 14} On February 28, 2007, the jury returned a verdict of not guilty on Count one and guilty on Count two. On the same day, the trial court sentenced appellant to five years in prison.

Review and Analysis
{¶ 15} Appellant filed a timely appeal and raises six assignments of error for our review.

Sufficiency and Manifest Weight of the Evidence
{¶ 16} "I. The prosecution failed to produce sufficient evidence to support the elements of rape, and, as a result, the trial court erred in denying appellant's motion for acquittal and the jury verdict was against the manifest weight of the evidence."

{¶ 17} Appellant argues that the state failed to present evidence of penetration to sustain a rape conviction; therefore, the trial court erred in denying his Crim. R. 29 motion for acquittal. He also argues that a guilty conviction on the rape charge was against the manifest weight of the evidence. *Page 7

{¶ 18} Under Crim. R. 29, a trial court "shall not order an entry of acquittal if the evidence is such that reasonable minds can reach different conclusions as to whether each material element of a crime has been proved beyond a reasonable doubt." State v. Bridgeman (1978),55 Ohio St.2d 261, syllabus. "A motion for judgment of acquittal under Crim. R. 29(A) should only be granted where reasonable minds could not fail to find reasonable doubt." State v. Apanovitch (1987),33 Ohio St.3d 18, 23. Thus, the test an appellate court must apply in reviewing a challenge based on a denial of a motion for acquittal is the same as a challenge based on the sufficiency of the evidence to support a conviction. See State v. Bell (May 26, 1994), Cuyahoga App. No. 65356.

{¶ 19} In State v. Jenks (1991), 61 Ohio St.3d 259, 273,574 N.E.2d 492, the Ohio Supreme Court set forth the test an appellate court should apply when reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence of support a conviction:

{¶ 20}

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

Related

State v. Jones
2025 Ohio 4317 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2025)
State ex rel. Swopes v. McCormick
2022 Ohio 306 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2022)
State v. Szafranski
2019 Ohio 4349 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2019)
State v. Black
2013 Ohio 2105 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2013)
State v. Bolton
2012 Ohio 169 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2012)
State v. Emerson
949 N.E.2d 538 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2011)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2009 Ohio 622, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-gaines-91179-2-12-2009-ohioctapp-2009.