State v. Back, 2015 Ohio 4447

Joshua Ryan Back was indicted for burglary (second-degree felony), grand theft (third-degree felony), and petty theft (misdemeanor) arising from entering a garage and removing items from a car, including a .32 caliber revolver.
Pursuant to a plea agreement, Back pled guilty to grand theft (firearm) and an amended burglary charge (third-degree felony).
The trial court sentenced Back to three years on each count and ordered the grand-theft term (firearm) to run consecutively to the burglary term, for a total of six years.
Back appealed, claiming (1) the burglary and grand theft are allied offenses that should have merged, and (2) the trial court erred in imposing prison rather than community control (and in running terms consecutively).
The appellate court reviewed the merger claim for plain error and reviewed the sentence under R.C. 2953.08(G)(2) (whether the sentence is clearly and convincingly contrary to law).

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether burglary and grand theft are allied offenses requiring merger	State: offenses may be charged separately where conduct and harm are distinct	Back: offenses arose from a single animus and single course of conduct and should merge	Not allied; burglary completed on entry, theft completed later when firearm removed — committed separately, so no merger (no plain error)
Whether trial court erred by imposing prison for burglary (third-degree)	State: court considered R.C. 2929.11/2929.12 and properly sentenced within statutory range	Back: court failed to apply presumption/consider community-control alternatives for third-degree felonies	No error; record shows court considered sentencing principles and factors and imposed a lawful term
Whether grand-theft firearm term must run consecutively to other prison terms	State: statutes require prison presumption and consecutive service for theft of firearm	Back: argued court failed to consider community-control alternatives and guidelines before consecutive term	Consecutive term required by statute for theft of firearm once prison term imposed; court properly ordered consecutive sentence
Whether appellate standard permits relief	State: sentencing complied with statutory requirements	Back: sought reversal under R.C. 2953.08(G)(2)	Appellate court did not clearly and convincingly find sentences contrary to law; affirmed

State v. Ruff, 143 Ohio St.3d 114 (Ohio 2015) (clarifies allied-offenses test: consider conduct, animus, and import)
State v. Brown, 186 Ohio App.3d 437 (12th Dist. 2010) (discusses R.C. 2941.25 and prohibition on multiple punishments for same conduct)