State v. McGrath

Citations

• 2025 Ohio 2600

Syllabus

Falsification; insurance fraud; attempted grand theft; theft offense; deception; R.C. 2921.13(A)(9); R.C. 2913.47(B)(1); R.C. 2923.02; R.C. 2913.02(A)(3); Crim.R. 29; bench trial; GPS evidence; sufficiency; manifest weight. Judgment affirmed. After a bench trial, the trial court convicted defendant-appellant of falsification in violation of R.C. 2921.13(A)(9) and attempted grand theft in violation of R.C. 2923.02 / 2913.02(A)(3) for filing a false stolen-vehicle report and seeking nearly $50,000 in insurance proceeds. The State presented sufficient evidence to support the convictions, including body-camera footage of interviews with appellant, his own written statement alleging the theft of his truck and equipment, witness testimony, and GPS data indicating appellant had visited the location where the vehicle was recovered approximately an hour before filing his theft report. In addition, the convictions were not against the manifest weight of the evidence. A review of the entire record did not suggest that this was the exceptional case where the trial court clearly lost its way and created a manifest miscarriage of justice.