State v. Fowler, Unpublished Decision (12-23-2003)
State v. Fowler, Unpublished Decision (12-23-2003)
Opinion of the Court
{¶ 2} On July 25, 2002, appellant was arrested pursuant to an outstanding warrant in a municipal court case and was placed in the Zanesville County Jail to serve a seventy day sentence. On same date, appellant was given a copy of the aforementioned indictment and a detainer/holder was placed on appellant.
{¶ 3} On October 16, 2002, appellant was served with the indictment. On same date, appellant was arraigned and a trial was scheduled for January 7, 2003. On the latter date, appellant filed a motion to dismiss for speedy trial violations under R.C.
{¶ 4} On February 25, 2003, appellant pled no contest to the charges. By judgment entry filed April 17, 2003, the trial court sentenced appellant to an aggregate term of two years in prison.
{¶ 5} Appellant filed an appeal and this matter is now before this court for consideration. Assignments of error are as follows:
{¶ 11} The gravamen of appellant's argument is that the placing of the detainer/holder upon him while he was serving the municipal court sentence was the functional equivalent of an arrest. In support of this position, appellant cites the case of State v. Bailey (2000),
{¶ 12} "We have also noted that `[i]t is reasonably clear that the legislature has determined that the speedy trial clock begins to run with either an arrest or its functional equivalent.' State v. Brock (May 22, 1991), Montgomery App. No. 12227, unreported, 1991 WL 96313. And in Statev. Lloyd (Mar. 31, 1999), Montgomery App. No. 15927, unreported, 1999 WL 173017, we observed that issuing a detainer against an accused who has already been arrested on another charge has the same effect as if the individual had been arrested and confined on the charge that precipitated the detainer."
{¶ 13} In Bailey, the defendant was not already serving a sentence on an unrelated charge as appellant sub judice. The defendant was arrested and awaiting trial on pending charges in Hamilton County when a detainer was placed on him by the Dayton Police Department. We find this distinction to be important because in this case, appellant was not available for trial on the indictment until his municipal court sentence was served or until the warrant on the indictment was actually served. As noted on the return of executed warrant filed October 18, 2002, the warrant on the indictment was served on October 16, 2002.1
{¶ 14} Because appellant argues the detainer placed upon him on July 25, 2002 was the functional equivalent of an arrest, he argues the language of R.C.
{¶ 15} "For purposes of computing time under divisions (A), (B), (C)(2), and (D) of this section, each day during which the accused is held in jail in lieu of bail on the pending charge shall be counted as three days."
{¶ 16} In this case, appellant was not "held in jail in lieu of bail on the pending charge" while he was serving his sentence on the municipal court charge even when said criminal sentence was for a misdemeanor.
{¶ 17} Upon review, we find the trial court did not err in denying appellant's motion to dismiss.
{¶ 18} Assignments of Error I, II, III and IV are denied.
{¶ 19} The judgment of the Court of Common Pleas of Muskingum County, Ohio is hereby affirmed.
Farmer, J., Gwin, P.J. and Edwards, J. concur.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- State of Ohio v. Jeremy L. Fowler
- Cited By
- 2 cases
- Status
- Unpublished