In re J.A.

Citations

• 2023 Ohio 222

Syllabus

Delinquency sexual imposition R.C. 2907.06(A)(1) force threat of force sufficiency of the evidence manifest weight. The juvenile court's adjudication of delinquency was supported by sufficient evidence and was not against the manifest weight of the evidence. The juvenile was found delinquent for committing an act at his high school that would constitute sexual imposition under R.C. 2907.06(A)(1). A female student testified that a male student - who was a stranger to her - grabbed her breast in a hallway without consent as she was leaving the school at the end of the school day. A school resource officer testified that a school security employee identified the juvenile as matching the description of the perpetrator recorded on surveillance footage. The juvenile admitted to touching the victim inappropriately when questioned and said he had no reason for touching the victim's breast. The state did not need to prove that the juvenile compelled the sexual contact by force or threat of force. The type, nature and circumstances of the incident supported a reasonable inference that the juvenile's act was for the purpose of sexual arousal or gratification. There was nothing in the record to indicate that anything occurred that would have led the juvenile, who was 17 years old, to conclude that it would not be offensive to grab the breast of a girl he had never met and never spoken to in a school hallway while she was headed home after classes. While the victim could not identify the juvenile as the person who touched her, the other evidence readily supported that the juvenile was the person who touched her. The juvenile pointed to no inconsistencies in the evidence.