State v. Johnson

Citations

• 2024 Ohio 158

Syllabus

Quadruple homicide sufficient evidence arson gunshot Evid.R. 404(B) domestic abuse text messages autopsy photographs DNA blood Evid.R. 703 shoes Evid.R. 701 gasoline Reagan Tokes. - Defendant's convictions upheld where state presented sufficient evidence by means of DNA and cell phone evidence, that the defendant shot and killed his ex-fiancé, the mother of his child, and an innocent-bystander neighbor, and then set fire to the home killing his child and another child. Evid.R. 404(B) other acts of prior domestic abuse was properly admitted to show a strained relationship between the defendant and his ex-fiancé, and to prove identity of the killer. No abuse of discretion in admitting select autopsy photographs of each victim because they permitted the jury to understand the state's theory of the case. Trial court properly permitted DNA expert to opine based on the DNA mixtures and percentages, that defendant wore the jeans that contained the female victim's blood. Opinion testimony from the officers that the shoes worn by the person of interest in home-surveillance videos looked like the shoes recovered from defendant's home was admissible. The shoes contained both gasoline, the accelerant used to set the fire, and the female victim's blood.