State v. Alberston

Citations

• 2021 Ohio 2125

Syllabus

Appellant's ineffective assistance claims alleging that his trial counsel performed deficiently at his motion to suppress hearing and jury trial lack merit because appellant failed to establish that the outcome of those proceedings would have been different but for counsel's alleged deficient performance. In addition, appellant's convictions for aggravated burglary, aggravated arson, felony murder, and aggravated robbery were supported by sufficient evidence and were not against the manifest weight of the evidence. The trial court, however, erred at sentencing by merging appellant's aggravated burglary offense with his aggravated arson and felony murder offenses. The trial court correctly merged appellant's aggravated robbery offense with the aggravated arson and felony murder offenses, and it did not err by failing to merge appellant's grand theft of a firearm offense with his aggravated burglary and aggravated robbery offenses. The trial court also did not err by imposing restitution, as the trial court properly considered appellant's present and future ability to pay restitution as required by R.C. 2929.19(B)(5). Judgment affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded for resentencing.