State v. Turner, 22777 (12-24-2008)

2008 Ohio 6836
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedDecember 24, 2008
DocketNo. 22777.
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 2008 Ohio 6836 (State v. Turner, 22777 (12-24-2008)) 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. Turner, 22777 (12-24-2008), 2008 Ohio 6836 (Ohio Ct. App. 2008).

Opinion

OPINION
{¶ 1} David Turner appeals following his conviction on sixteen counts of pandering obscenity involving a minor and eight counts of gross sexual imposition involving a minor. After a bench trial, Turner was found guilty of all pending charges. The court sentenced Turner to six years *Page 2 on each count of pandering and five years on each gross sexual imposition count, with the terms on all counts to run concurrently with each other. Turner was also designated a Tier II sex offender and he is required to register for twenty-five years, with in-person verification every 180 days.

{¶ 2} Turner argues that the trial court should have granted his motion to suppress, because the affidavit supporting the issuance of the warrant was not based on probable cause. Turner also contends that the State failed to prove consent for the search. In addition, Turner raises defects in the indictment and a lack of sufficient evidence to support a finding that he engaged in sexual contact or that the materials in question were obscene. For the reasons that follow, the judgment of the trial court is affirmed.

I
{¶ 3} In July 2007, David Turner and his wife, Diane, owned eight computers. Three of the computers, plus a laptop, were kept in an unlocked office on the first floor of the house. One computer in the office, a Macintosh, was used primarily by David. However, Diane also accessed the computer occasionally.

{¶ 4} On the evening of July 5, 2006, David was out of town on business. Some time prior to this evening, David and Diane had given a friend some used personal digital assistants (PDAs). While talking to the friend on the night of July 5, Diane learned that the friend had found a video on David's PDA of two men engaged in homosexual sex. A website was listed at the end of the video, and when Diane accessed the website, she found that it was not a pornographic website, but appeared to be a website that sold software for making movies on the computer. *Page 3

{¶ 5} Diane then went to the Turner's home office and looked at a Macintosh computer, which contained all the family finances. Diana had used this computer before, and the computer contained a folder entitled "Diane's stuff." When Diane clicked on the icon for the folder, she discovered about twenty files. Some were movies, and at least one was an audio file. The first file that Diane opened was an audio file, and it was a recording of their eleven-year-old son, J.T., crying. Diane then opened several more files and discovered a movie of David bringing J.T. into the office and instructing him to remove his clothing. David then told J.T. to bend over a step stool, and paddled him. Another file showed J.T. naked and bent over David's knee, while David applied some type of clear oil onto J.T.'s buttocks. David then caressed J.T.'s buttocks, and paddled him. After accessing a third video showing their son being paddled while completely naked, Diane called a child abuse hotline, and then called the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office. Diane was extremely upset about the content of the videos, and was also frightened, because her husband could access the computer remotely and had the ability to delete files.

{¶ 6} When Deputy Chaney of the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office arrived, Diane invited him to come into the house. Diane was visibly upset and was also concerned about the possibility of losing the information on the computer. Diane took Chaney to the computer room, opened up one of the files and began to show him a video. Diane identified the persons on the video as her husband and older son. Chaney watched the video for a few moments and asked Diane to stop the video because it was disturbing and he thought it might be criminal in nature. Chaney contacted his supervisor and asked him to come to the scene. *Page 4

{¶ 7} After Chaney's supervisor arrived, the officers did not conduct a search of the home; they simply talked with Diane. Diane signed a consent form allowing the officers to take a computer tower. Although the consent form did not specify which computer was involved, the officers took the hard drive of the Macintosh computer.1

{¶ 8} The police subsequently obtained search warrants for additional computers and computer-type retaining items like thumb drives and memory cards. The affidavit for the search warrants was based on information that Diane provided, which was quite detailed. David Turner was initially indicted on four counts of pandering obscenity and two counts of gross sexual imposition of a minor, to which he entered a not guilty plea. A reindictment was issued in August 2007, presenting additional counts.

{¶ 9} The trial court overruled Turner's motion to suppress and amended motion to suppress in November 2007. After initially deciding to plead no contest to all the charges, Turner withdrew his plea and agreed to have the matter tried to the court. He was found guilty as charged, and was sentenced accordingly.

II
{¶ 10} In his first assignment of error, Turner contends that the evidence should have been suppressed, because the affidavit in support of the search warrant failed to provide probable cause. *Page 5

{¶ 11} The standards for reviewing decisions on motions to suppress are well established. In ruling on a motion to suppress, the trial court "assumes the role of the trier of fact, and, as such, is in the best position to resolve questions of fact and evaluate the credibility of the witnesses." State v. Retherford (1994), 93 Ohio App.3d 586, 592,639 N.E.2d 498 (citation omitted). Accordingly, when we review suppression decisions, "we are bound to accept the trial court's findings of fact if they are supported by competent, credible evidence. Accepting those facts as true, we must independently determine as a matter of law, without deference to the trial court's conclusion, whether they meet the applicable legal standard." Id. Accord, State v. Mackey (2001),141 Ohio App.3d 604, 609-10, 752 N.E.2d 350.

{¶ 12} In the specific context of probable cause in affidavits submitted in support of search warrants:

{¶ 13} "`The task of the issuing magistrate is simply to make a practical, common-sense decision whether, given all the circumstances set forth in the affidavit before him, including the "veracity" and "basis of knowledge" of persons supplying hearsay information, there is a fair probability that contraband or evidence of a crime will be found in a particular place.'" State v. George (1989), 45 Ohio St.3d 325,544 N.E.2d 640, at paragraph one of the syllabus, quoting from Illinois v.Gates (1983),

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

Related

State v. Montalvo
2018 Ohio 3142 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2018)
State v. Turner
2013 Ohio 806 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2013)
Core v. State
947 N.E.2d 250 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2010)
State v. Portis, 2008 Ca 22 (4-10-2009)
2009 Ohio 1776 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2009)
State v. Johnson, 22656 (3-20-2009)
2009 Ohio 1288 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2009)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2008 Ohio 6836, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-turner-22777-12-24-2008-ohioctapp-2008.