State v. Sumlin

2020 Ohio 1600
Ohio Court of Appeals·Decided April 23, 2020·No. 108000·Published·Cited by 4 cases

Opinion

COURT OF APPEALS OF OHIO

EIGHTH APPELLATE DISTRICT COUNTY OF CUYAHOGA

STATE OF OHIO, :

Plaintiff-Appellee, :

No. 108000

v. :

ROSS SUMLIN, JR., :

Defendant-Appellant. :

JOURNAL ENTRY AND OPINION

JUDGMENT: AFFIRMED

RELEASED AND JOURNALIZED: April 23, 2020

Criminal Appeal from the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas Case No. CR-17-623480-A

Appearances:

Michael C. O’Malley, Cuyahoga County Prosecuting Attorney, and Jennifer M. Meyer, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, for appellee.

Charles Ruiz-Bueno Co., L.P.A., and J. Charles Ruiz-

Bueno, for appellant.

FRANK D. CELEBREZZE, JR., P.J.:

Defendant-appellant, Ross Sumlin, Jr., brings the instant appeal challenging his convictions for aggravated robbery, aggravated burglary, felonious assault, kidnapping, and having weapons while under disability. Appellant argues that his convictions were not supported by sufficient evidence and against the manifest weight of the evidence. After a thorough review of the record and law, this court affirms.

I. Factual and Procedural History This case involves a robbery and shootout that occurred on October 12, 2016, at Prodigy Cuts Barbershop on Storer Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio. The barbershop’s owner, Rachad Ahmad, and another barber, Abdiel Espinal-Collazo, were getting ready to close the shop for the day. There were two customers inside the shop: Ahmad’s cousin, Yusef Suleiman, and Suleiman’s five-year-old nephew, S.S.

Sometime after 7:00 p.m., appellant entered the barbershop and asked for a “lineup.”1 Ahmad was still cutting S.S.’s hair, so he told appellant to take a seat in the lobby until Espinal-Collazo could take care of him. Appellant sat down in the lobby and began texting or playing on his phone.

Approximately two minutes after appellant entered the barbershop, two armed individuals, Rayshaun Perkins (a.k.a. “worm”) and Deshon Pennyman, entered the shop, approached Ahmad and Espinal-Collazo, and ordered them to turn over their belongings.

Unbeknownst to Perkins and Pennyman, Ahmad and Espinal-Collazo were also carrying firearms. When they observed Perkins and Pennyman enter the

1 A “lineup” is edging a clean line around the face and head. (Tr. 223.)

shop and demand that everyone turn over their belongings, Ahmad and Espinal- Collazo drew their weapons and began firing at Perkins and Pennyman.2 Perkins and Pennyman exchanged fire with Ahmad and Espinal-Collazo.

Perkins and Pennyman retreated and ran out the front of the barbershop. Pennyman sustained a gunshot wound to his chest during the shootout.

Ahmad believed that appellant was also firing shots during the shootout because he saw “flashes” coming from the corner where appellant had been sitting. Ahmad acknowledged that he was not certain that appellant was firing shots because it was very dusty during the shootout. After observing the “flashes” in the area where appellant was sitting, Ahmad and Espinal-Collazo fired shots in this direction. Appellant made his way out of the barbershop, but not before sustaining a gunshot wound.

After running out of the barbershop, Perkins and Pennyman jumped into the “getaway” car parked around the corner from the barbershop, and the driver, Anthony Patterson, drove Pennyman to MetroHealth Medical Center (“Metro”). The group did not wait for appellant before fleeing the area, they left him behind at the barbershop. Pennyman explained that they were not concerned about leaving appellant behind because as far as everyone else was concerned, appellant “had nothing to do with [the shooting].” (Tr. 426.) Pennyman testified that Perkins called appellant and told him he was taking Pennyman to the hospital.

2 Suleiman testified that Espinal-Collazo fired the first shot. (Tr. 316.)

Suleiman, S.S., and Espinal-Collazo took cover in the barbershop’s bathroom. After appellant, Perkins, and Pennyman had fled from the barbershop, Ahmad crawled to the entrance and locked the door. He joined the group in the bathroom where they called 911 and waited until police arrived.

Ahmad’s hip was grazed by a bullet during the shootout. S.S.

sustained a gunshot wound to the foot, and he was transported to Metro for treatment.

Suleiman spoke with investigators at Metro. He identified Pennyman as one of the shooters. Pennyman was arrested at the hospital for his involvement in the robbery and shootout.

Pennyman, a minor, negotiated a plea agreement with the state.

Pennyman was charged in juvenile court, and subsequently bound over to the general division of the common pleas court. Under the plea agreement, Pennyman’s case would be sent back to the juvenile court for disposition and sentencing in exchange for his testimony against Perkins and appellant. (Tr. 387.) Pennyman met with Cleveland Police Sergeant John Lally on July 21, 2017, and provided a recorded statement about the robbery.

Appellant was arrested for his involvement in the robbery and shootout in December 2017. On December 13, 2017, a Cuyahoga County Grand Jury returned a 17-count indictment charging appellant with: (1) – (4) aggravated robbery, a first-degree felony in violation of R.C. 2911.01(A)(1); (5) aggravated robbery, a first-degree felony in violation of R.C. 2911.01(A)(3); (6) aggravated burglary, a first-degree felony in violation of R.C. 2911.11(A)(1); (7) aggravated burglary, a first-degree felony in violation of R.C. 2911.11(A)(2); (8) felonious assault, a second-degree felony in violation of R.C. 2903.11(A)(1); (9) – (12) felonious assault, a second-degree felony in violation of R.C. 2903.11(A)(2); (13) – (16) kidnapping, a first-degree felony in violation of R.C. 2905.01(A)(2); and (17) having weapons while under disability, a third-degree felony in violation of R.C. 2923.12(A)(2). Counts 1-16 contained one- and three-year firearm specifications, notice of prior conviction specifications, and repeat violent offender specifications. Appellant pled not guilty during his December 18, 2017 arraignment.

Appellant elected to try the notice of prior conviction and repeat violent offender specifications to the bench. A jury trial commenced on October 22, 2018. Appellant and Perkins were tried together.

The following witnesses testified on behalf of the state: (1) Rachad Ahmad; (2) Natalie Pennyman; (3) Yusef Suleiman; (4) Abdiel Espinal-Collazo; (5) Deshon Pennyman; (6) Dwayne Duke; (7) Cynthia Moore; and (8) John Lally.

At the close of the state’s case, defense counsel moved for a Crim.R. 29 judgment of acquittal. The trial court denied defense counsel’s motion.

The defense did not call any witnesses. The defense renewed its Crim.R. 29 motion that the trial court denied.

The jury returned its verdict on October 30, 2018. The jury found appellant guilty on all 17 counts. The trial court found appellant guilty on the specifications underlying Counts 1-16. The trial court ordered a presentence investigation report and set the matter for sentencing.

The trial court held a sentencing hearing on December 10, 2018. The trial court imposed an aggregate prison term of 18 years.

On December 18, 2018, appellant filed the instant appeal challenging the trial court’s judgment. He assigns two errors for review:

I. The jury’s verdict was against the manifest weight of the evidence and prejudicial against Defendant-Appellant.

II. The evidence adduced at trial was insufficient to sustain a verdict against Defendant-Appellant for aggravated burglary.

II. Law and Analysis

For ease of discussion, we will address appellant’s assignments of error out of order.

A. Sufficiency

In his second assignment of error, appellant argues that his convictions for aggravated burglary were not supported by sufficient evidence.

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State v. Sumlin, 2020 Ohio 1600 (Ohio Ct. App. 2020).

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