State v. Bailey, 2012 Ohio 3955

Bailey was convicted by jury of improperly discharging into a habitation; judgment of conviction and three-year sentence.
Witnesses Trotter, Hicks, and Saunders testified Bailey retrieved a gun during an argument and fired, hitting Trotter’s steel door.
Police recovered a spent round and observed a dent in Trotter’s door; Bailey consented to a search of his apartment but no gun was found.
All key witnesses admitted intoxication; there were some inconsistencies in their accounts.
Bailey appeals arguing the verdict weighs against the evidence and police did not test gunshot residue or recover the gun.
The appellate court affirmed the conviction, finding the weight of the evidence did not clearly fail the trier of fact.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the conviction is against the manifest weight of the evidence	State argues the evidence supports conviction	Bailey claims witnesses are unreliable and inconsistent; verdict against weight of evidence	Conviction affirmed; not against the weight of the evidence

State v. Leonard, 104 Ohio St.3d 54 (2004-Ohio-6235) (standard for substantial evidence in weight review)
State v. Thompkins, 78 Ohio St.3d 380 (1997-Ohio-52) (thirteenth juror concept in manifest weight review)
Tibbs v. Florida, 457 U.S. 31 (1982) (due process concerns in weight-of-the-evidence framework)
State v. DeHass, 10 Ohio St.2d 230 (1967) (weight-of-evidence credibility is primarily for the jury)
State v. Bierbaum, 1990 Ohio App. LEXIS 1204 (3d Dist. No. 13-88-18) (recognizes credibility determinations are for jury)