State v. Chapman, 2018 Ohio 4560

Defendant Eric Chapman was indicted for second-degree felonious assault after his long-term girlfriend, L.B., suffered severe head injuries and a concussion causing permanent disability; the indictment included a mandatory three-year firearm specification.
At trial L.B. (with limited memory) testified Chapman was home with her when she was injured and identified Chapman as the person who "beat" her and hit her in the head with some object.
Chapman's sister, E.C., testified Chapman admitted threatening to "pistol whip" L.B. and hitting her about four times with the base/handle of a gun; Chapman denied the admission and denied striking L.B. with a gun.
The firearm alleged to have been used as a bludgeon was never recovered and there was no testimony that Chapman pointed, threatened to shoot, or otherwise implicitly threatened to shoot L.B. at the time of the assault.
A jury convicted Chapman of felonious assault and the three-year firearm specification; the trial court imposed an aggregate 11-year sentence (8 years for assault consecutive to a mandatory 3 years for the firearm specification).
On appeal the Twelfth District affirmed the felonious assault conviction but vacated the firearm-specification conviction and the accompanying three-year sentence for insufficient evidence that the gun was operable or readily renderable operable.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether felonious assault conviction was supported by sufficient evidence / against manifest weight	State: L.B.'s identification and E.C.'s testimony that Chapman admitted pistol-whipping L.B. suffice to prove assault beyond a reasonable doubt	Chapman: E.C.'s testimony is unreliable and the evidence insufficient; defense testimony denied the assault	Affirmed: jury credibility choice reasonable; evidence sufficient and not against manifest weight
Whether three-year firearm specification was supported by sufficient evidence (operability)	State: circumstantial evidence (use and display of gun as bludgeon) can prove operability	Chapman: no direct or circumstantial evidence gun was operable or could be readily rendered operable; no threats or indications he would shoot	Reversed/Vacated: insufficient evidence that the firearm was operable or readily renderable operable; specification vacated

Jenks v. Ohio, 61 Ohio St.3d 259 (Ohio 1991) (sufficiency standard: viewing evidence in light most favorable to prosecution, any rational trier of fact could find elements proven)
Thompkins v. Ohio, 78 Ohio St.3d 380 (Ohio 1997) (distinguishes sufficiency and manifest-weight review; discusses circumstantial proof)
Murphy v. State, 49 Ohio St.3d 206 (Ohio 1990) (state must prove firearm operability beyond a reasonable doubt for firearm specifications)
State v. DeHass, 10 Ohio St.2d 230 (Ohio 1967) (trial court and jury determine witness credibility)