State v. Sexton

2024 Ohio 5652

• Court: Ohio Court of Appeals
• Decided: December 2, 2024
• Docket: 2024-P-0034
• Status: Published

Opinion

[Cite as State v. Sexton, 2024-Ohio-5652.]

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF OHIO ELEVENTH APPELLATE DISTRICT PORTAGE COUNTY

STATE OF OHIO, CASE NO. 2024-P-0034 CITY OF KENT,

Plaintiff-Appellee, Criminal Appeal from the Municipal Court, Kent Division - vs -

LARRY SEXTON, JR., Trial Court No. 2023 CRB 01167 K

Defendant-Appellant.

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Decided: December 2, 2024 Judgment: Appeal dismissed

Victor V. Vigluicci, Portage County Prosecutor, 241 South Chestnut Street, Ravenna, OH 44266 (For Plaintiff-Appellee).

Eric M. Levy, 55 Public Square, Suite 1600, Cleveland, OH 44113 (For Defendant- Appellant).

EUGENE A. LUCCI, P.J.

{¶1} On May 29, 2024, appellant, Larry Sexton, Jr., filed a notice of appeal from

the trial court’s May 10, 2024 entry. On September 27, 2024, appellant filed a motion

requesting limited remand if the court finds that the May 10, 2024 entry is not a final

appealable order. Appellee, the State of Ohio, filed a motion to dismiss for lack of

jurisdiction on October 17, 2024.

{¶2} Appellate courts have jurisdiction over final orders or judgments of lower

courts within their appellate districts. Section 3(B)(2), Article IV, Ohio Constitution. A judgment entry that orders restitution but does not indicate an amount is interlocutory,

and not a final appealable order. In re Zakov, 107 Ohio App.3d 716, 718 (11th Dist.

1995). If a lower court’s judgment is not final, then an appellate court has no jurisdiction,

and the matter must be dismissed. Gen. Acc. Ins. Co. v. Ins. of N. Am., 44 Ohio St.3d

17, 20 (1989).

{¶3} In the appealed entry, a sentence was imposed on appellant after being

found guilty of assault. The entry further indicates a “Restitution Hearing to be Set.” No

amount of restitution was determined or imposed in the May 10, 2024 entry. A sentencing

entry that contemplates further action by setting a restitution hearing for a later date is not

a final and appealable order. State v. Bechtel, 2020-Ohio-4889, ¶ 25 (11th Dist.).

{¶4} As to the request for remand, because there is no final appealable order,

this court lacks jurisdiction to remand the matter, and the appeal must be dismissed.

Lambert v. Global Int’l Servs., 2023-Ohio-350, ¶ 9 (11th Dist.).

{¶5} Accordingly, the appeal is hereby dismissed for lack of a final appealable

order.

MATT LYNCH, J.,

JOHN J. EKLUND, J.,

concur.

Case No. 2024-P-0034