State ex rel. Keith v. Dept. of Rehab. & Corr. (Slip Opinion), 109 N.E.3d 1171

Bernard R. Keith is an Ohio inmate serving an indeterminate sentence whose parole was denied after a February 2012 hearing; the board noted he had been paroled previously eight times and set the next hearing for April 2017.
Keith challenged alleged inaccuracies in his parole record in a 2012 mandamus action; the Tenth District denied relief as moot but this court reversed in 2014 (Keith I), ordering the parole board to investigate and correct any substantive errors that might affect parole consideration.
The board corrected some record entries and held a new parole hearing on February 17, 2015; it again denied parole and left the next hearing date at April 2017 (later actually held Feb. 9, 2017).
Keith filed a second mandamus petition arguing the 2015 hearing did not provide “meaningful consideration” as required by Keith I, pointing primarily to the board’s failure to alter the next hearing date despite record corrections.
The Tenth District magistrate and, on appeal, the Tenth District Court of Appeals found Keith failed to prove by clear and convincing evidence that his parole record contained material errors or that the board relied on substantively inaccurate information; the court denied the writ.
The Ohio Supreme Court affirmed, holding Keith did not demonstrate that any false or misleading information in his parole record might have adversely affected the board’s consideration of his parole request.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the parole board failed to give Keith meaningful consideration at the Feb 2015 hearing because of materially false or misleading information in his parole record	Keith: a factual error (entry showing participation in “GED Fast Track” he says did not occur) remained and could have prevented meaningful consideration; failure to change next hearing date shows cursory review	Parole Board: corrected record where appropriate; the alleged error is immaterial and there is no showing the board relied on substantively inaccurate information	Court: Keith failed to show by clear and convincing evidence a material error that might have affected the board’s consideration; writ denied

State ex rel. Keith v. Adult Parole Auth., 141 Ohio St.3d 375 (2014) (Ohio Supreme Court ordered parole board to investigate and correct substantive errors that could prevent an inmate’s application from receiving meaningful consideration)