State v. Jones

Citations

• 2021 Ohio 4117

Syllabus

The trial court did not err by instructing the jury on sexual battery in violation of R.C. 2907.03(A)(2) as a lesser included offense of rape in violation of R.C. 2907.02(A)(1)(a) given that sexual battery in violation of R.C. 2907.03(A)(2) is, in fact, a lesser included offense of rape in violation of R.C. 2907.02(A)(1)(a). Additionally, the trial court did not err by allowing the state to question appellant regarding his so-called pre-arrest, pre-Miranda silence where the state's questioning was not used as substantive evidence indicative of appellant's guilt, but instead used to impeach appellant's claim that he was \[k]ind of\ surprised when the police arrived at his home with a search warrant the day after the alleged rape occurred. Lastly, appellant's conviction for sexual battery in violation of R.C. 2907.03(A)(2) was supported by sufficient evidence and not against the manifest weight of the evidence where the evidence, established appellant drugged the victim with a sleep aid prior to engaging in sexual conduct with the victim given the victim woke up after blacking out with her pants off, her tampon removed, and her underwear pulled down to her knees after having unwittingly engaged in a sexual encounter with appellant from which appellant's semen was found on swabs taken from the victim's perianal and anal areas.