State v. Hammond

2023 Ohio 3551
Ohio Court of Appeals·Decided September 29, 2023·No. 2023 CA 00018·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

COURT OF APPEALS

LICKING COUNTY, OHIO

FIFTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

JUDGES:

STATE OF OHIO : Hon. W. Scott Gwin, P.J.

: Hon. William B. Hoffman, J.

Plaintiff-Appellee : Hon. Craig R. Baldwin, J.

:

-vs- :

: Case No. 2023 CA 00018 JUSTIN M. HAMMOND :

:

Defendant-Appellant : OPINION

CHARACTER OF PROCEEDING: Criminal appeal from the Licking County Court of Common Pleas, Case No. 2022 CR 00707

JUDGMENT: Affirmed

DATE OF JUDGMENT ENTRY: September 29, 2023

APPEARANCES: For Plaintiff-Appellee For Defendant-Appellant

JENNY WELLS BRIAN A. SMITH Prosecuting Attorney BRIAN A. SMITH LAW FIRM, LLC BY: KENNETH W. OSWALT 123 South Miller Road, Suite 250 Assistant Prosecutor Fairlawn, OH 44333 20 South Second Street Newark, OH 43055

Licking County, Case No. 2023 CA 00018 2

Gwin, P.J.

{¶1} Defendant-appellant Justin M. Hammond [“Hammond”] appeals his conviction and sentence after a jury trial in the Licking County Court of Common Pleas.

Facts and Procedural History

{¶2} On October 27, 2022, Hammond was indicted on one count of Possession of a Fentanyl-Related Compound, a fifth-degree felony in violation of R.C. 2925.11(A)/(C) (11)(a). [Docket Entry No. 1]. On November 8, 2022, the trial judge issued an order for removal to have Hammond transported from the Franklin County Community Based Corrections Facility [“CBCF”] in Columbus, Ohio to Licking County for his arraignment on the charge. [Docket Entry No. 8].

{¶3} Hammond was arraigned in the Licking County Court of Common Pleas on November 21, 2022. At his arraignment, Hammond’s attorney told the magistrate that Hammond was “currently in a lock down facility in Franklin County. He was placed there by his PRC officer.” T. Arraignment, Nov. 21, 2022 at 4. Hammond’s attorney informed the magistrate that Hammond would likely remain in that facility until February. Id. Hammond’s attorney asked the trial judge to fashion bond in the present case so as to allow Hammond to return to Franklin County to complete the CBCF program. Id. The trial judge agreed and set bond at $50,000, cash or surety. The magistrate advised Hammond that upon his release from the program, Hammond would be returned to Licking County. Id.

{¶4} On February 8, 2023, the trial judge issued an order for removal to have Hammond transported from the CBCF in Columbus, Ohio to Licking County for his jury trial. [Docket Entry No. 26].

{¶5} Hammond’s jury trial commenced on February 15, 2023.

On September 25, 2022, officers at the Licking County Jail responded to an outbreak of fentanyl overdoses, impacting several inmates

{¶6} Sergeant Joby Bell an employee at the Licking County Jail, confirmed that multiple inmates had suffered from overdoses of fentanyl on September 25, 2022. T. at 124. Hammond, who was incarcerated at the facility at the time, was one of the inmates impacted.

{¶7} The Licking County Sheriff’s Office investigated. According to Detective Kyle Boerstler of the Licking County Sheriff’s Office, another inmate, E. T. brought the fentanyl into the jail. T. at 93; 114. E.T. provided the drugs to Hammond. Detective Boerstler testified that surveillance video from the jail showed E.T. received a piece of paper from another inmate, placed it on a bed, and that Hammond then retrieved it. T. at 94; State’s Exhibit 1A.

{¶8} Sergeant Joby Bell testified that as multiple inmates were overdosing on fentanyl, he was monitoring the inmates gathered in Module C of the jail. T. at 128. Sergeant Bell testified that he saw Hammond, who in the officer’s opinion, looked “a little off.” T. at 128. He described Hammond as pale, sweating, grimacing, and looking upset. Id. State’s Exhibit 1F. Sergeant Bell approached Hammond to ask if he was alright. Id. Hammond told the officer that he was “fine.” Id. at 129. The pair fist bumped and the sergeant began to walk away. State’s Exhibit 1F. As he looked back, Sergeant Bell testified that he could see Hammond “had his left pinkie up to his face and it looked like he was snorting something…” T. at 130. Sergeant Bell ran over to where Hammond was seated on the bunk, and grabbed his left wrist. Id.; State’s Exhibit 1F. Sergeant Bell noticed that Hammond had powder on his pinkie, and he had a Hi-C drink packet in his right hand, which he dropped to the floor. Sergeant Bell grabbed what he described as a “makeshift envelope” from Hammond’s left hand. T. at 130 - 131. He also retrieved the Hi-C packet from the floor.

{¶9} Officer Kodie Hutchinson testified that he assisted Sergeant Bell in responding to Hammond. T. at 143. Officer Hutchinson testified that he observed powder on Hammond’s shirt, chest, mustache, and legs. Id. State’s Exhibit 1F. Officer Hutchinson testified that Hammond attempted to wipe some of the powder off. T. at 145. Officer Hutchinson observed white speckles of powder on Hammond’s shirt and pants as his clothes were cut off. Id. at 146.

{¶10} Mark Hiatt testified that he is the lab director of the Central Ohio Regional Crime Lab. T. at 149. Hiatt examined the folded paper containing a white powder that was taken from Hammond’s hand, and the Hi-C drink packet. Id. at 152; State’s Exhibit 6. The folded paper was found to contain 0.1117 grams of fentanyl. Id.

Hammond takes the witness stand

{¶11} Hammond testified that he did not receive fentanyl from anyone at the Licking County jail. T. at 167. He claimed that he did not knowingly ingest fentanyl at the Licking County jail. Hammond testified that he was contaminated by accident when he picked up a piece of paper that another inmate had put down. T. at 167-168. Hammond denied having anything in his hands during the events that day. Id. at 168. Hammond further testified that he does not remember anything else until he woke up on the ground. Id. at 169-171. Hammond agreed that the video surveillance tapes showed he was under the influence of fentanyl. Id. at 173- 174; State’s Exhibit 1F. Hammond testified that he had been unintentionally contaminated by the fentanyl at the jail, but denied knowingly using or possessing it. Hammond was treated at the hospital for what he believed to be a fentanyl overdose. T. at 176: State’s Exhibit 7.

{¶12} At the conclusion of the evidence and after instructions by the trial judge, the jury found Hammond guilty on the sole count contained in the Indictment. On February 15, 2023, the trial court sentenced Hammond to the maximum possible sentence of 1 year in prison. Hammond was not given any jail time credit toward his sentence.

Assignments of Error

{¶13} Hammond raises two Assignments of Error,

{¶14} “I. APPELLANT'S CONVICTION FOR POSSESSION OF A FENTANYL-

RELATED COMPOUND WAS AGAINST THE MANIFEST WEIGHT OF THE EVIDENCE.

{¶15} “II. THE TRIAL COURT'S SENTENCE OF APPELLANT WAS CONTRARY TO LAW FOR FAILING TO PROPERLY CALCULATE APPELLANT'S JAIL-TIME CREDIT AS REQUIRED UNDER R.C. 2967.191, IN VIOLATION OF APPELLANT'S RIGHT TO EQUAL PROTECTION UNDER THE FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION AND ARTICLE I, SECTION 2 OF THE OHIO CONSTITUTION.”

I.

{¶16} In his First Assignment of Error, Hammond maintains that his conviction for Possession of a Fentanyl-Related Compound is against the manifest weight of the evidence. Specifically, he argues his ingestion of fentanyl was accidental.

Licking County, Case No. 2023 CA 00018 6

Standard of Appellate Review – Manifest Weight

{¶17} As to the weight of the evidence, the issue is whether the jury created a manifest miscarriage of justice in resolving conflicting evidence, even though the evidence of guilt was legally sufficient. State v. Thompkins, 78 Ohio St.3d 380, 386–387, 678 N.E.2d 541 (1997), superseded by constitutional amendment on other grounds as stated by State v. Smith, 80 Ohio St.3d 89, 684 N.E.2d 668, 1997–Ohio–355; State v. Issa, 93 Ohio St.3d 49, 67, 752 N.E.2d 904 (2001).

{¶18} Weight of the evidence addresses the evidence's effect of inducing belief.

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State v. Hammond, 2023 Ohio 3551 (Ohio Ct. App. 2023).

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