State v. Blair

Citations

• 2021 Ohio 3370

Syllabus

A jury found appellant guilty of assaulting a fellow jail inmate. The trial court did not err by declining to give a self-defense instruction, as there was little evidence that appellant had feared imminent physical harm from the victim. The trial court also did not err by requiring appellant to wear personal protective equipment (PPE) in the courtroom. Wearing PPE at the height of the COVID pandemic was not inherently prejudicial, and in light of the video evidence of the assault in this case, which occurred when appellant was incarcerated in the county jail, appellant fails to show that he suffered actual prejudice. Judgment affirmed. (Donovan, J., concurring in judgment only.)