State v. Skally

2025 Ohio 1269

Opinion

[Cite as State v. Skally, 2025-Ohio-1269.]

COURT OF APPEALS LICKING COUNTY, OHIO FIFTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

STATE OF OHIO JUDGES: Hon. William B. Hoffman, P.J. Plaintiff-Appellee Hon. Andrew J. King, J. Hon. David M. Gormley, J. -vs-

KAMERON SKALLY Case No. 2024 CA 00082

Defendant-Appellant OPINION

CHARACTER OF PROCEEDINGS: Appeal from the Licking County Court of Common Pleas, Case No. 2018-CR- 00830

JUDGMENT: Affirmed

DATE OF JUDGMENT ENTRY: April 10, 2025

APPEARANCES:

For Plaintiff-Appellee For Defendant-Appellant

JENNY WELLS KAMERON SKALLY, INMATE #A769180 Licking County Prosecuting Attorney Mansfield Correctional Institution P.O. Box 788 KENNETH W. OSWALT, ESQ. Mansfield, Ohio 44901 Assistant Prosecuting Attorney 20 S. Second Street, 4th Floor Newark, Ohio 43055 Hoffman, P.J. {¶1} Defendant-appellant Kameron Skally appeals the judgment entered by the

Licking County Common Pleas Court overruling his motion to withdraw his guilty plea.

Plaintiff-appellee is the State of Ohio.

STATEMENT OF THE FACTS AND CASE

{¶2} On November 7, 2018, Newark Police Department officers responded to a

report of shots fired and a possible suicide in an apartment building in Newark, Ohio.

Upon arriving, the officers found a deceased victim lying in bed with a gunshot wound to

the left side of her neck, and an AR-15 assault rifle lying on her left side. A supposed

“suicide note” had been sent via text to the victim's mother a few minutes before Appellant

called 911. When interviewed by police, Appellant admitted he sent the “suicide note” to

the victim's mother before shooting and killing the victim. He admitted he then called 911

to report a suicide.

{¶3} On November 15, 2018, Appellant was indicted by the Licking County

Grand Jury with aggravated murder, murder, and tampering with evidence. The

aggravated murder and murder charges were accompanied by firearm specifications.

{¶4} Appellant filed a motion for a competency evaluation. Following evaluation,

the trial court found Appellant to be competent to stand trial. Appellant then filed a motion

for leave to enter a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity. The trial court granted the

motion, and ordered Appellant to submit to an evaluation by a forensic psychiatrist. The

evaluation report found insufficient evidence to support a finding Appellant did not know

the wrongfulness of the acts with which he was charged. Appellant requested an

independent sanity evaluation, which was approved by the trial court. {¶5} The parties entered into a plea agreement, pursuant to which Appellant

entered a plea of guilty to aggravated murder with the firearm specification and tampering

with evidence, and the charge of murder was dismissed by the State. The trial court

convicted Appellant upon his pleas of guilty. Appellant argued for a sentence of twenty

years to life in prison, with an additional three-year term of incarceration on the firearm

specification, for an aggregate term of twenty-three years to life in prison. The State

argued for a term of twenty-five years to life in prison, with an additional three-year prison

sentence on the firearm specification, for an aggregate term of twenty-eight years to life

in prison. The trial court sentenced appellant to twenty-five years to life in prison on the

aggravated murder conviction and to three years of incarceration for tampering with

evidence, to be served concurrently. The trial court sentenced Appellant to three years

of incarceration on the firearm specification, for an aggregate term of incarceration of

twenty-eight years to life.

{¶6} Appellant failed to appeal his conviction and sentence. Appellant filed a

motion for leave to file a delayed appeal on two occasions. This Court overruled both of

Appellant’s motions for delayed appeal.

{¶7} Appellant filed a motion to withdraw his guilty plea on July 8, 2024. The trial

court overruled Appellant’s motion. It is from the August 22, 2024, judgment of the trial

court overruling his motion to withdraw his plea Appellant prosecutes his appeal,

assigning as error1:

1 Appellant also filed a motion in the trial court seeking appointed counsel and preparation of transcripts at

the State’s expense to pursue the instant appeal. The trial court overruled the motion. This Court affirmed the judgment of the trial court in State v. Skally, 2025-Ohio-761 (5th Dist.). THE TRIAL COURT ABUSED ITS DISCRETION AND VIOLATED

APPELLANTS’ RIGHTS PROTECTED UNDER THE FIFTH, SIXTH AND

FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT RIGHTS OF THE UNITED STATES

CONSTITUTION AND OHIO CONSTITUTION ARTICLE I, SECTION 10

WHEN IT DENIED THE APPELLANT’S MOTION TO WITHDRAW HIS

GUILTY PLEA.

{¶8} Appellant argues the trial court erred in overruling his motion to withdraw

his guilty plea. He argues his sentence of twenty-eight years to life in prison is

unauthorized by statute, and he was not properly informed of the maximum sentence. He

also argues his trial counsel was ineffective for allowing him to enter a guilty plea when

his sentence was not authorized by statute, and by failing to move for a psychological

evaluation. We disagree.

{¶9} Crim. R. 32.1 provides, “A motion to withdraw a plea of guilty or no contest

may be made only before sentence is imposed; but to correct manifest injustice the court

after sentence may set aside the judgment of conviction and permit the defendant to

withdraw his or her plea.”

{¶10} Res judicata bars a defendant from raising claims in a Crim. R. 32.1 post-

sentence motion to withdraw a guilty plea which he raised or could have raised on direct

appeal. State v. Ketterer, 2010-Ohio-3831, ¶ 59. In the instant case, Appellant’s claims

could have been raised on direct appeal. Therefore, we find his claims are barred by res

judicata, and the trial court did not err in overruling his motion to withdraw his guilty plea. {¶11} The assignment of error is overruled. The judgment of the Licking County

Common Pleas Court is affirmed.

By: Hoffman, P.J. King, J. and Gormley, J. concur