State v. Williams

Citations

• 2025 Ohio 1457

Syllabus

Drug trafficking and possession; dominion and control; knowledge; substance; constructive possession; hearsay; bench trial. - Appellant's convictions for drug possession and trafficking were supported by sufficient evidence and not against the manifest weight of the evidence. A conviction for drug possession may rest on constructive possession, so long as knowledge of the substances and dominion or control over the premises where the substances are found can be inferred from the evidence presented. Even if hearsay evidence was improperly elicited in a bench trial, we presume that the trial court was capable of distinguishing and disregarding such hearsay unless there is affirmative evidence in the record to the contrary.