State v. Rice

Citations

• 2017 Ohio 9114

Syllabus

AUTOS/CRIMINAL - OVI - RECKLESS OPERATION - CONSTITUTIONAL LAW/CRIMINAL - DUE PROCESS -EVIDENCE - PROBABLE CAUSE - HEARSAY: The defendant's due-process rights were not violated by the police officer's failure to preserve a urine sample that, at best, could have been subjected to further testing, the results of which may have been favorable to the defendant, because the defendant failed to demonstrate that the officer, who discarded the sample after obtaining a valid breathalyzer test, had acted in bad faith. The defendant's arrest for operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs (\OVI\) was supported by probable cause, even though the defendant, who had been involved in a car accident, had denied drinking, and the arresting officer had not observed before the arrest the odor of alcohol or drugs, or an open container of alcohol, because the totality of the circumstances-including the defendant's slurred speech, impaired motor skills, erratic behavior, lack of serious injury, and the presence of an odor-masking agent-would lead a prudent person to believe that the defendant was driving under the influence. The defendant's convictions for OVI per se breath high tier and reckless operation of a vehicle were not against the manifest weight of the evidence, where the offenses were supported by a valid breath test, an officer's testimony about the defendant's impairment, as corroborated by the dash cam video, and a 911 caller's in-court testimony concerning the defendant's unsafe driving. Any error in the court's admission of alleged hearsay testimony was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt, because the testimony had no impact on the verdicts and the remaining evidence established the defendant's guilt beyond any reasonable doubt. The defendant's sentence for OVI is void, and his conviction for OVI must be vacated, where the trial court imposed a sentence for OVI after determining that OVI and OVI per se were allied offenses of similar import subject to