State v. Buchar, 2017 Ohio 7601

On Jan. 21, 2016, Bradley Buchar confronted Joshua Smith after Smith revved a water-department truck and allegedly made a hostile gesture; Smith and his coworker Allen Davis were working on Ray Street.
Buchar drove onto a resident's yard, approached the truck, shouted threats including "I'll break your jaw," and made a raised-arm swinging motion toward Smith; Smith moved back and no significant injury occurred (witnesses described a chest bump).
Police obtained witness statements, a video of the incident, and Buchar admitted to Officer Gray that he swung at Smith and threatened him.
Buchar was charged with one count of assault under R.C. 2903.13(A) (knowingly cause or attempt to cause physical harm), found guilty by a magistrate, objections were overruled, and the trial court imposed a fine and suspended jail term on conditions.
On appeal Buchar argued the conviction was against the manifest weight of the evidence, citing inconsistent witness testimony, lack of intent to cause harm, and alleged insufficient proximity for the swing to be an attempt to injure.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether conviction for assault (R.C. 2903.13(A)) is against the manifest weight of the evidence	State: testimony, video, and Buchar's admission support that Buchar knowingly attempted to cause physical harm	Buchar: witness inconsistencies, the swing was a warning/conditional threat, and distance made injury unlikely	Affirmed — weight of credible evidence supports conviction

State v. Thompkins, 78 Ohio St.3d 380 (1997) (standard for manifest-weight review)
State v. Montgomery, 148 Ohio St.3d 347 (2016) (clarifying manifest-weight inquiry)
State v. Yarbrough, 95 Ohio St.3d 227 (2002) (credibility and weight of evidence determined by factfinder)
State v. Miller, 96 Ohio St.3d 384 (2002) (definition of mental state "knowingly" in criminal context)
Miller v. Paulson, 97 Ohio App.3d 217 (1994) ("probably" defined as more likely than not for mens rea analysis)