State v. Hayes, Unpublished Decision (11-2-2000)
State v. Hayes, Unpublished Decision (11-2-2000)
Opinion of the Court
On March 29, 1999, at approximately 7:10 p.m., Walter Gomula arrived at his home at 2068 West Boulevard in Cleveland to find he had been burglarized and the glass in his back door was smashed in and strewn about the floor. When police arrived, they discovered that a VCR, worth between $100.00 and $140.00 had been taken from the bedroom. The Scientific Investigation Unit (SIU) was called in.
SIU responded to the scene and dusted for fingerprints at the point of entry, the back door, and the bedroom. Numerous fingerprints were found at the point of entry. After comparing a candidate list of potential matches from the Automated Fingerprinting Identification System (AFIS), SIU found that seven of the fingerprints matched those of the defendant, Preston Hayes. The owner's testimony revealed that he did not know the defendant and defendant had no right to be in Gomula's home.
Following the jury verdict, defendant was sentenced on December 8, 1999. At his sentencing the notice of prior conviction was stipulated. In addition to the notice of prior conviction (a robbery conviction from 1975), the prosecutor informed the court that the defendant had a thirty-year criminal record, extending back to 1969 and that he was currently on parole for three breaking and entering offenses. The court sentenced defendant to five years in prison and this timely appeal ensued.
Defendant's sole assignment of error states:
I. THE TRIAL COURT ERRED BY IMPOSING A FIVE-YEAR SENTENCE ON THIS DEFENDANT, AS THE RECORD DOES NOT SUPPORT THE SENTENCE.
The defendant claims an appeal of right under R.C.
In support of the proposition that he should not have received a five-year sentence, defendant argues that none of the factors under R.C.
In the present case, defendant was convicted of a felony of the second degree and stipulated to a notice of prior conviction. With notice of prior conviction, the burglary offense carries a mandatory term of incarceration under R.C.
Pursuant to R.C.
Under R.C.
Except as provided in division (E), (F), or (G) of this section and unless a specific sanction is required to be imposed or is precluded from being imposed pursuant to law, a court that imposes a sentence upon an offender for a felony may impose any sanction or combination of sanctions on the offender that are provided in sections
2929.14 to2929.18 of the Revised Code.
In this case, the trial court was lawfully allowed to choose any term of incarceration for a felony of the second degree. Additionally, if the factors listed in R.C.
Under R.C.
Defendant's sole assignment of error is overruled.
It is ordered that appellee recover of appellant its costs herein taxed.
The Court finds there were reasonable grounds for this appeal.
It is ordered that a special mandate issue out of this Court directing the Court of Common Pleas to carry this judgment into execution. The defendant's conviction having been affirmed, any bail pending appeal is terminated. Case remanded to the trial court for execution of sentence.
PATTON, P.J., and MICHAEL J. CORRIGAN, J., CONCUR.
___________________________ JAMES M. PORTER, JUDGE
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.