State v. Crenshaw

Citations

• 2020 Ohio 3183

Syllabus

Domestic violence enhancing offense child abuse serious physical harm 2919.22(A)-(B)(1) ineffective assistance of counsel witness competence endangering children. Defendant appealed from her convictions for a second-degree felony endangering children charge, a third-degree felony endangering children charge, and a first-degree misdemeanor domestic violence charge. The domestic violence charge included a \furthermore clause\ that alleged the defendant had previously pled guilty to an aggravated assault charge. The purpose of the furthermore clause was to elevate the domestic violence charge from a first-degree misdemeanor to a fourth-degree felony if the clause is proven. The defendant struck her nine-year-old child and pushed her into a wall in an attempt to discipline her. At trial, the court did not conduct a full competency hearing for the child witness we found that plain error did not occur though the court should have conducted the hearing. We found that the domestic violence charge was not against the weight of the evidence because the disciplinary methods were not proper or reasonable parental discipline. However, we found that the state had not proven the \furthermore clause.\ The state was required to prove that the defendant had committed the aggravated assault against a family member they did not provide any evidence of the relationship between the victim and the defendant. We found that the state did not present sufficient evidence that the victim had suffered serious physical harm, and per our precedent, overturned these convictions. Finally, we did not find ineffective assistance of counsel.