State v. Smith, Unpublished Decision (10-25-2001)
State v. Smith, Unpublished Decision (10-25-2001)
Opinion of the Court
On February 23, 2001, appellant pled guilty to one count of Sexual Battery, in violation of R.C. §
A sentencing hearing was held on April 9, 2001, which included a pre-sentence report and testimony from the probation officer.
By entry filed April 16, 2001, the trial court sentenced appellant to five years on the charge of Sexual Battery and eighteen months on the charge of Corruption of a Minor, with the sentences to run concurrently.
Appellant filed an appeal and this matter is now before this court for consideration. Appellant's assignments of error are as follows:
THE TRIAL COURT ERRED WHEN IT IMPOSED THE MAXIMUM SENTENCE UPON THE DEFENDANT FOR A SINGLE OFFENSE OF SEXUAL BATTERY.
THE TRIAL COURT ERRED AS TO THE RESTITUTION PORTION OF ITS SENTENCE PURSUANT TO OHIO REVISED CODE SECTION2919.18 (A)(1) IN THAT NO AMOUNT WAS GIVEN AS TO THE ACTUAL LOSS TO THE VICTIM.
Initially, we no longer review felony sentencing under an abuse of discretion standard. After the enactment of Senate Bill 2 in 1995, an appellate court's review of an appeal from a sentence was modified, as per R.C.
(G)(1) The court hearing an appeal of a sentence * * * may increase, reduce, or otherwise modify a sentence that is appealed under this section or may vacate the sentence and remand the matter to the trial court for re-sentencing if the court clearly and convincingly finds any of the following:
(a) That the record does not support the sentence;
* * *
(d) That the sentence is otherwise contrary to law.
Accordingly, we review the sentence under these guidelines
R.C.
(F) On the appeal of a sentence under this section, the record to be reviewed shall include all of the following, as applicable:
(1) Any pre-sentence, psychiatric, or other investigative report that was submitted to the court in writing before the sentence was imposed. * * *
(2) The trial record in the case in which the sentence was imposed;
(3) Any oral or written statements made to or by the court at the sentencing hearing at which the sentence was imposed.
(4) Any written findings that the court was required to make in connection with the modification of the sentence pursuant to judicial release under division (H) of section
2929.20 of the Revised Code.
Appellant has the right to appeal sentences which are contrary to law. Appellant argues that his sentence is contrary to law in that the court did not give adequate weight to the mitigating factors presented at the sentencing hearing, to-wit: the non-existence of a juvenile record and felony convictions; no prior prison term; first time sexual offender and the remoteness in time of past misdemeanor convictions.
Sexual Battery is a third degree felony. Appellant was sentenced to five years incarceration which falls within the R.C. §
(C) * * * the court imposing a sentence upon an offender for a felony may impose the longest prison term authorized for the offense pursuant to division (A) of this section only upon offenders who committed the worst forms of offense, upon offenders who pose the greatest likelihood of committing future crimes, upon certain major drug offenders under division (D)(3) of this section, and upon certain repeat violent offenders in accordance with division (D)(2) of this section.
We read this statute in the disjunctive. See State v. Comersford (June 3, 1999), Delaware App. No. 98CA01004, unreported, at 2. Consequently, a maximum sentence may be imposed if the trial court finds any of the above-listed offender categories apply.
R.C. §
In the case sub judice, the trial court reviewed the statutory purposes of felony sentencing, and analyzed the facts of the case in light of the seriousness and recidivism factors contained in R.C. §
The Court has considered the purposes and principals in Revised Code §
2929.11 and the factors in §2929.12 , and finds that the following factors exit [SIC], the age of the Defendant, the age of the victim, no remorse shown by the Defendant; prior criminal history, worst form of the offense, and substantial medical harm to the victim. The Court further finds that anything less than the maximum sentence would demean the seriousness of the offense, and would not adequately protect the public.
In making his decision, the judge considered: the pre-sentence investigation report; the fact that this crime was a sex offense; the age of the minor victim, who was thirteen when the offense took place; the substantial mental and physical injury sustained by the victim; the fact that the victim was impaired due to alcohol provided by the Appellant (Sent. T. at 6); the abuse of the relationship between the appellant and the victim which facilitated the offense; appellant's prior record, which included domestic violence, theft and falsification offenses (Sent. T. at 12); and finally the lack of remorse on the part of Appellant. After considering these factors, the court imposed a sentence within the statutory parameters.
The trial court found on the record that appellant committed the worst form of the offense by using alcohol to subdue his victim and that a minimum sentence would demean the seriousness of the offense and would not adequately protect society.
Based on the above, we find that the record supports the sentence. Hence, the trial court did not err in sentencing appellant to the maximum sentence under R.C.
Appellant's First Assignment of Error is overruled.
In its sentencing entry, the trial court ordered restitution, as follows:
It is FURTHER ORDERED that the Defendant shall . . . make restitution to the victim in an amount to be determined by the Adult Probation Department and submitted to this Court by separate entry.
A trial court may impose restitution as part of a sentence pursuant to R.C, 2919.18(A)(1), which provides:
(A) . . . Financial sanctions that may be imposed pursuant to this section include, but are not limited to, the following:
(1) Restitution by the offender to the victim of the offender's crime or any survivor of the victim, in an amount based on the victim's economic loss. The court shall order that the restitution be made to the adult probation department that serves the county on behalf of the victim, to the clerk of courts, or to another agency designated by the court, except that it may include a requirement that reimbursement be made to third parties for amounts paid to or on behalf of the victim or any survivor of the victim for economic loss resulting from the offense. . . . At sentencing, the court shall determine the amount of restitution to be made by the offender. All restitution payments shall be credited against any recovery of economic loss in a civil action brought by the victim or any survivor of the victim against the offender. (Emphasis added.)
The trial court in the present case ordered restitution as a part of Appellant's sentence following his guilty pleas. The trial court's failure to determine the amount of restitution at sentencing, however, as required by R.C. §
Accordingly, we sustain Appellant's second assignment of error and remand this cause for the trial court to conduct a hearing to determine the amount of restitution to be made.
While this court understands the difficulty of establishing a restitution amount with a reasonable degree of certainty where, as in the present case, the victims psychiatric counseling is still ongoing at the time of sentencing, R.C. §
The decision of the trial court is affirmed in part and reversed in part and remanded to the trial court for proceedings in accordance with this opinion.
By BOGGINS, J., EDWARDS, P.J. and GWIN, J. concur.
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