State v. Mingua

327 N.E.2d 791, 42 Ohio App. 2d 35, 71 Ohio Op. 2d 234, 1974 Ohio App. LEXIS 2712
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedDecember 3, 1974
Docket74AP-526
StatusPublished
Cited by65 cases

This text of 327 N.E.2d 791 (State v. Mingua) 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. Mingua, 327 N.E.2d 791, 42 Ohio App. 2d 35, 71 Ohio Op. 2d 234, 1974 Ohio App. LEXIS 2712 (Ohio Ct. App. 1974).

Opinion

Holmes, J.

This matter involves the appeal of a probation revocation entered by the Municipal Court of Franklin County. The facts in brief, upon which this appeal has been brought, are that the defendant, the appellant herein, had previously been found guilty of an offense in Columbus, and was put on probation for a two-year period.

It would appear that the defendant was placed in the care of members of his family who resided in another community. Further, the record shows that the defendant’s probation officer received a call from the defendant’s sister- *36 in-law to the effect that some neighbors in the community were accusing the defendant of having committed a certain offense of the same or similar nature for which he had previously been convicted and put on probation. A probation revocation hearing followed.

At the outset of the probation revocation hearing, counsel for the defendant objected to continuing the hearing on the basis that counsel had only been brought into the case the morning of such hearing; further, neither counsel nor the defendant had received written specifications of the charges which were to be determined at such hearing. In addition, counsel argued that there had been no preliminary hearing afforded to the defendant to determine probable cause as to whether the terms of the probation had been violated, as required by the pronouncement of the Supreme Court of the United States in the cases of Gagnon v. Scarpelli (1973), 13 Crim. L. Rptr. 3081, and Morrissey v. Brewer (1972), 408 U. S. 471.

Counsel for the defendant argued, also, that the only testimony that would be given would be that of the probation officer, and would concern the telephone call from the defendant’s sister-in-law. He contended that such would be pure heresay. Counsel for the defendant further relied upon the decision of this court in State v. Miller, Franklin County Court of Appeals, No. 73AP-320, decided January 22, 1974 (1974 Decisions, page 124), and State v. Smith (1972), 29 Ohio App. 2d 241. He accordingly argued that the manner and procedure of the contemplated hearing were in violation of the rights of this defendant.

At the hearing of the probation revocation, the trial court permitted the probation officer to relate the matter of the telephone conversation that he had with the defendant’s sister-in-law concerning the accusations she had heard others make concerning the defendant. Also, he testified that the sister-in-law had informed him she had a conference with the psychiatrist at the mental health clinic. He stated the doctor informed her as follows:

“He feels that this man, referring to the defendant, should be hospitalized because all the tests that they have indicate that he is likely to commit this crime again. He *37 also confirmed to her that, from the information he has, that the defendant very likely did commit the offense which he was alleged to have committed * * V’

The probation officer, upon being asked whether he knew of any of the particulars of the alleged offense which the defendant was to have committed, again stated that the only information, other than the conversation of the defendant ’s sister-in-law, was that with the director of the mental health clinic, and that “she did tell me that they believe that the defendant committed this act.”

Upon such state of the record, the trial court revoked the defendant’s probation, and reinstated the former sentence.

The defendant appeals, citing the following errors:

1. “Appellant was denied fundamental due process of law since neither he nor his counsel was served with written notice of the claimed violations of probation”;
2. “Appellant was denied fundamental due process of law by not being afforded a probable cause hearing prior to the final adjudicatory proceeding”;
3. “Appellant was denied fundamental due process of law when he was denied the right to confront and cross-examine adverse witnesses”;
4. “The order of the trial court revoking appellant’s probation is not supported' by sufficient probative evidence, hence such an order is contrary to law.”

At the outset, we should state that the legal principles that shall be applied to this matter involving a revocation of probation shall be the same as would be applied to a matter involving a revocation of parole, in that the majority of this court, in the case of State v. Miller, supra, held that the due process hearing rights, as extended pursuant to Morrissey, supra, and Parker v. Cardwell (1972), 32 Ohio App. 2d 193, to parolees charged with a violation of parole, would be in a like manner recognized for those charged with a violation of probation. The decision in Miller noted State v. Smith, supra.

I.

In Parker v. Cardwell, supra, this court, substantially in conformity with the United States Supreme Court de- *38 cisión in Morrissey, supra, set forth the manner in which revocation hearings were to be conducted. A revocation, pursuant to such decision, should be based upon a two-stage proceeding. One stage is the original probable cause hearing, and the other stage is the revocation hearing. In the instant case, there appears to have been only one hearing — that which had been invoked by the probation officer concerning certain information that he had received.

There is no indication in the record that the defendant or his counsel had received any written notice of the hearing, or that any written charges were served upon them. However, defendant’s counsel states that he was informed some time before the hearing of the nature of the charges that would be brought out at the hearing.

The defendant argues that he, in accordance with minimal due process standards, is entitled to written notice of such grounds upon which the revocation is sought, and he cites Morrissey, Parker and Gagnon in support of such position. As stated Parker contemplates a two-stage hearing; the original probable cause hearing does not, because of the rather immediate necessities of such, require written notice or formal charges presented. However, the second-phrase hearing does, according to Parker, require written notice of the claimed violation. It is our view that such a hearing as was conducted herein was in the nature of a probable cause hearing rather than a revocation hearing; therefore, no written notice of such hearing was required to be served, nor the nature of the charges made known. For this reason, this assignment of error is dismissed.

II.

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

Related

State v. Tackett
2024 Ohio 1498 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2024)
State ex rel. Johnson v. Adult Parole Auth.
2023 Ohio 578 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2023)
Cleveland v. ProTerra, Inc.
2021 Ohio 1086 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2021)
State v. Domanick
2018 Ohio 936 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2018)
State v. Saffell
2016 Ohio 5283 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2016)
State v. Birt
2016 Ohio 3478 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2016)
State v. Hand
2016 Ohio 582 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2016)
State v. Garner
2016 Ohio 461 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2016)
State v. Sherazee
2015 Ohio 4160 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2015)
State v. Clark
2012 Ohio 5570 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2012)
State v. Hilson
2012 Ohio 4536 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2012)
State v. Tooley
2011 Ohio 2449 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2011)
State v. Garrett
2011 Ohio 691 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2011)
State v. Dockery
933 N.E.2d 1155 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2010)
State v. Chambliss, 08ca20 (3-20-2009)
2009 Ohio 1284 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2009)
State v. Dunning, 08ca07 (2-13-2009)
2009 Ohio 691 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2009)
State v. Pettry, 2006ca0075 (11-5-2007)
2007 Ohio 6106 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2007)
State v. Koenig, 15-06-11 (4-23-2007)
2007 Ohio 1904 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2007)
State v. Gullet, Unpublished Decision (11-13-2006)
2006 Ohio 6564 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2006)
State v. Meadows, Unpublished Decision (11-2-2006)
2006 Ohio 5887 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2006)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
327 N.E.2d 791, 42 Ohio App. 2d 35, 71 Ohio Op. 2d 234, 1974 Ohio App. LEXIS 2712, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-mingua-ohioctapp-1974.