State v. Conant
2020 Ohio 4319
Ohio Ct. App.2020Background
- Defendant Robert Conant was indicted for one count of felonious assault (R.C. 2903.11(A)(1)) for choking his fiancée, Ashley McAfee, on October 29, 2019. McAfee testified she blacked out and later had neck bruising and pain.
- Police photographed neck marks; hospital examiner testified injuries were consistent with strangulation and could cause altered consciousness or incapacitation.
- A jail-call recording captured a male (identified as Conant) urging someone to tell McAfee not to remember or testify.
- Trial court denied Conant’s request to instruct the jury on the lesser included offense of assault; a jury convicted him of felonious assault.
- Court sentenced Conant to a minimum of five years and maximum of seven-and-a-half years under the Reagan Tokes Law and imposed a no-contact order.
- On appeal Conant raised five claims: refusal to give lesser-included instruction, insufficiency/manifest-weight, ineffective assistance (juror and Evid.R. 404(B) issues), Reagan Tokes unconstitutionality, and illegality of imposing both prison and a no-contact community-control sanction.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (State) | Defendant's Argument (Conant) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether trial court erred by refusing a lesser-included instruction on assault | Assault is a lesser included offense but the facts showed serious physical harm so no lesser instruction was warranted | McAfee's injuries were not "serious" (brief LOC, no immediate treatment), so jury could convict of assault but not felonious assault | No error — evidence (loss of consciousness, medical testimony, bruising) supported serious physical harm; lesser instruction not required |
| Sufficiency and manifest weight of the evidence | Evidence (victim testimony, photos, medical opinion, jail call) sufficed to prove felonious assault beyond a reasonable doubt and verdict not against weight | Only victim testified to the assault; injuries were temporary so insufficient/against weight | Overruled — viewing evidence favorably to prosecution, a rational juror could convict; weight challenge fails |
| Ineffective assistance of counsel (juror question & allowance of prior-acts testimony) | Counsel should have moved to dismiss or further question juror and objected to/struck testimony about relationship history | Juror merely asked if defendant could speak to identify a voice; Jury was instructed on the right not to testify; relationship background was non-404(B) background | Overruled — counsel performance not deficient because juror posed no Fifth Amendment conflict and testimony was permissible background information |
| Constitutionality of Reagan Tokes Law | Conant argued the statute violates separation of powers and due process (parallels to former R.C. 2967.11) | State argued Conant lacks standing and law differs because court imposes min/max and DRC only sets release time within that range | Forfeited — Conant did not raise the constitutional challenge at trial; appeal forfeits all but plain-error review and he did not argue plain error here |
| Legality of imposing a prison term plus no-contact order (community-control sanction) | State defended the no-contact order citing modern prison communications | Conant relied on Anderson (Ohio Supreme Court): prison and community-control sanctions are generally mutually exclusive | Reversed in part — no-contact order vacated; trial court lacked authority to impose both for same felony absent express exception |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. Deanda, 989 N.E.2d 986 (Ohio 2013) (two-tier test for submitting lesser-included offenses)
- State v. Evans, 911 N.E.2d 889 (Ohio 2009) (elements comparison for lesser-included analysis)
- State v. Wine, 18 N.E.3d 1207 (Ohio 2014) (trial court must view evidence in light most favorable to defendant for lesser-included instruction)
- State v. Monroe, 827 N.E.2d 285 (Ohio 2005) (same standard cited for lesser-included review)
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (U.S. 1979) (sufficiency standard: any rational trier of fact)
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (U.S. 1984) (two-prong ineffective-assistance test)
- State v. Anderson, 35 N.E.3d 512 (Ohio 2015) (trial court may not impose a prison term and a no-contact community-control sanction for the same felony absent an express exception)
- State ex rel. Bray v. Russell, 729 N.E.2d 359 (Ohio 2000) (holding concerning former parole statute and separation of powers cited by appellant)