State v. Shepherd

2025 Ohio 1779
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedMay 19, 2025
Docket2024CA0045-M
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 2025 Ohio 1779 (State v. Shepherd) 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. Shepherd, 2025 Ohio 1779 (Ohio Ct. App. 2025).

Opinion

[Cite as State v. Shepherd, 2025-Ohio-1779.]

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

STATE OF OHIO C.A. No. 2024CA0045-M

Appellee

v. APPEAL FROM JUDGMENT ENTERED IN THE LAURA L. SHEPHERD COURT OF COMMON PLEAS COUNTY OF MEDINA, OHIO Appellant CASE No. 2023CR0433

DECISION AND JOURNAL ENTRY

Dated: May 19, 2025

HENSAL, Judge.

{¶1} Laura Shepherd appeals from the judgment of the Medina County Court of

Common Pleas. This Court affirms.

I.

{¶2} Ms. Shepherd was indicted on one count of domestic violence. The offense was

charged as a fourth-degree felony based on her having a prior conviction for domestic violence.

She initially pleaded not guilty to the charge. With the advice of counsel, she later withdrew that

plea and entered a plea of no contest. The trial court set the matter for sentencing.

{¶3} Before sentencing occurred, Ms. Shepherd moved to withdraw her plea. She

claimed newly discovered evidence had provided her with a potential basis for a defense. The

State filed a brief in opposition to her motion, and the trial court scheduled a hearing. The hearing

was postponed because Ms. Shepherd sought to retain new counsel. Her new attorney appeared

at the rescheduled hearing and argued on her behalf. The trial court denied Ms. Shepherd’s motion. 2

The court found that she had failed to demonstrate a reasonable and legitimate basis for

withdrawing her plea.

{¶4} After the trial court denied her motion, Ms. Shepherd moved to supplement the

record with an affidavit. The trial court denied the motion to supplement, and the matter proceeded

to sentencing. Ms. Shepherd orally renewed her motion to withdraw her plea at the time of

sentencing, but the court once again denied her motion. The court sentenced her to a jail term, five

years of community control, and other conditions.

{¶5} Ms. Shepherd now appeals from the trial court’s judgment and raises one

assignment of error for review.

II.

ASSIGNMENT OF ERROR

THE TRIAL COURT COMMITTED PREJUDICIAL ERROR THAT DEPRIVED LAURA L. SHEPHERD OF A TRIAL AND DUE PROCESS OF LAW AS GUARANTEED BY THE FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION AND ARTICLE ONE, SECTION TEN OF THE OHIO CONSTITUTION BY DENYING LAURA L. SHEPHERD’S PRESENTENCE MOTION TO WITHDRAW HER GUILTY PLEA.

{¶6} Ms. Shepherd argues the trial court erred when it denied her presentence motion to

withdraw her no contest plea. We do not agree.

{¶7} Criminal Rule 32.1 allows a defendant to seek the withdrawal of her plea either

before or after sentence is imposed. A presentence motion to withdraw a plea “should be freely

and liberally granted.” State v. Xie, 62 Ohio St.3d 521, 527 (1992). Even so, no defendant has an

“absolute right” to withdraw a plea prior to sentencing. Id. at paragraph one of the syllabus. “The

trial court must hold a hearing on the defendant’s motion and ‘determine whether there is a

reasonable and legitimate basis for the withdrawal of the plea.’” State v. Baker, 2016-Ohio-8026, 3

¶ 6 (9th Dist.), quoting Xie at 527. The defendant bears the burden of demonstrating a reasonable

and legitimate basis for withdrawing the plea. State v. Jones, 2012-Ohio-6150, ¶ 37 (9th Dist.).

{¶8} A motion to withdraw a plea “is addressed to the sound discretion of the trial court,

and the good faith, credibility and weight of the movant’s assertions in support of the motion are

matters to be resolved by that court.” State v. Smith, 49 Ohio St.2d 261 (1977), paragraph two of

the syllabus. Consequently, “[t]his Court will review a trial court’s ruling on a presentence motion

to withdraw under an abuse of discretion standard of review.” Baker at ¶ 7. An abuse of discretion

“implies that the court’s attitude is unreasonable, arbitrary, or unconscionable.” Blakemore v.

Blakemore, 5 Ohio St.3d 217, 219 (1983), quoting State v. Adams, 62 Ohio St.2d 151, 157 (1980).

{¶9} This Court traditionally has taken a multi-factored approach when reviewing the

denial of a motion to withdraw a presentence plea. We have held that a trial court does not abuse

its discretion by denying such a motion when:

(1) the defendant is represented by competent counsel; (2) the trial court provides the defendant with a full hearing before entering the [no contest] plea; and (3) the trial court provides the defendant with a full hearing on the motion to withdraw the [no contest] plea, where the court considers the defendant’s arguments in support of his motion to withdraw the [no contest] plea.

State v. Pamer, 2004-Ohio-7190, ¶ 10 (9th Dist.). We also have sanctioned the consideration of

additional, relevant factors, including:

(1) prejudice that may be suffered by the State, (2) the adequacy of representation afforded to the defendant, (3) the character of the underlying plea hearing, (4) the scope of the trial court’s consideration of the motion to withdraw, (5) the timing of the motion, (6) the reasons articulated in the motion to withdraw, (7) the defendant’s understanding of the nature of the charges and the potential sentences, and (8) whether the defendant may have been not guilty of the offense or had a complete defense. 4

State v. Braley, 2022-Ohio-2489, ¶ 7 (9th Dist.). We have held that trial courts must consider “‘the

facts and circumstances of each case.’” State v. West, 2005-Ohio-990, ¶ 23 (9th Dist.), quoting

Pamer at ¶ 11.

{¶10} The Ohio Supreme Court recently considered whether a multi-factored approach

applies when a defendant moves to withdraw his plea based on evidence withheld from him before

he entered it. State v. Barnes, 2022-Ohio-4486. Mr. Barnes was charged with murder after he

engaged in a gun fight with two men and a bystander died from a bullet wound. Id. at ¶ 3. There

was footage of the shooting, but Mr. Barnes never saw it. Id. at ¶ 4. The State provided the footage

directly to his counsel and designated it “counsel only.” Id. Believing there was no evidence to

support his claim of self-defense, Mr. Barnes pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter. Id. at ¶

6. He did not learn of the footage until the night before his sentencing hearing. Id. at ¶ 7. At that

time, he was inadvertently given access to the footage. Id. Mr. Barnes then moved to withdraw

his plea at his scheduled sentencing hearing. Id.

{¶11} The trial court held two hearings on Mr. Barnes’ presentence motion to withdraw

and appointed him new counsel for the second hearing. Id. at ¶ 8. Mr. Barnes explained that his

former attorneys had never allowed him to view the footage, which included audio. Id. He called

both attorneys to testify as witnesses, and neither could recall showing him the footage. Id. Mr.

Barnes testified that he had military training and that he believed the audio from the footage

showed he did not shoot first. Id. at ¶ 8, 23. He stated that he would not have pleaded guilty if he

had seen the footage because it supported his claim of self-defense. Id. at ¶ 8, 23.

{¶12} The trial court and the appellate court applied a version of the traditional, multi-

factored test to Mr. Barnes’ motion and refused to allow him to withdraw his plea. Id. at ¶ 9, 16-

17. Upon review, the Supreme Court rejected that approach. Id. ¶ 23. It confirmed, as a starting 5

point, the foundational presumption that presentence motions to withdraw are to be freely and

liberally granted. Id. at ¶ 21. The Supreme Court found that there was evidence (1) Mr. Barnes’

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Bluebook (online)
2025 Ohio 1779, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-shepherd-ohioctapp-2025.