State v. Brown, 2018 Ohio 4939

Alan Dale Brown was indicted on four counts of first-degree aggravated robbery after co-defendants allegedly robbed four victims at Brown's residence on December 21, 2017; victims were threatened and ordered to strip; one victim escaped and was found by a neighbor.
Brown was arrested January 7, 2018, pled not guilty, and remained in jail until trial began March 26, 2018.
A jury convicted Brown on all four aggravated-robbery counts but acquitted him on associated firearm specifications.
The trial court imposed four concurrent six-year terms (total six years) and five years of mandatory postrelease control.
Brown appealed, raising: (1) a speedy-trial violation, (2) failure to give a lesser-included-offense jury instruction (and ineffective assistance for not requesting one), and (3) that the six-year sentence was improper.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (State)	Defendant's Argument (Brown)	Held
Speedy trial	Trial commenced within statutory period (270 days with triple-counting for jail); no violation	State violated R.C. 2945.71 by not bringing Brown to trial within 270 days	Court held no violation: trial began 78 days after arrest; even with triple-counting timetable not exceeded; assignment overruled
Lesser-included offense instruction / ineffective assistance	Trial court properly declined to give lesser-included instructions when defendant did not request them; counsel’s choice was tactical	Trial court committed plain error by not instructing on theft (lesser-included) and counsel ineffective for failing to request it	Court held no plain error and no ineffective assistance: counsel’s omission was tactical given Brown’s defense of noninvolvement; instruction could have conflicted with defense strategy
Sentence (six years)	Sentence is within statutory range, court considered required factors, and record supports it	Six-year term excessive; Brown had led a law-abiding life for many years prior	Court upheld sentence under R.C. 2953.08(G)(2): sentence within statutory range, court considered R.C. 2929.11/2929.12, and record supports the court’s weighing of factors

State v. Taylor, 98 Ohio St.3d 27 (constitutional and speedy-trial right discussion)
State v. Barnes, 94 Ohio St.3d 21 (plain-error standard in criminal cases)
State v. Biros, 78 Ohio St.3d 426 (but-for standard for plain error affecting outcome)
State v. Marcum, 146 Ohio St.3d 516 (R.C. 2953.08(G)(2) standard for appellate review of felony sentences)
State v. Brandenburg, 146 Ohio St.3d 221 (appellate modification standard under R.C. 2953.08)
State v. Kalish, 120 Ohio St.3d 23 (prior standard for sentencing review referenced)
State v. Griffie, 74 Ohio St.3d 332 (presumption that failure to request lesser-included instruction is trial strategy)
State v. Lynn, 129 Ohio St.3d 146 (waiver of unrequested jury instructions)