State v. Elrod, 2016 Ohio 987

Defendant Kimberly C. Elrod was indicted on drug manufacturing (1st deg.), possession/assembly of chemicals (2nd deg.), and four counts of endangering children (3rd deg.).
After a jury trial in March–April 2015, Elrod was convicted on all counts and sentenced on May 18, 2015.
The trial court imposed mandatory statutory fines: $10,000 (Count One) and $7,500 (Count Two).
Elrod filed a delayed appeal raising ineffective assistance of counsel for failure to file an affidavit of indigency under R.C. 2929.18(B)(1) before sentencing.
The presentence investigation (PSI) showed Elrod was unemployed, on disability, had significant health problems and no savings—facts relevant to indigency.
The appellate court affirmed the convictions but reversed and remanded for resentencing, finding counsel ineffective for not filing the indigency affidavit and creating a reasonable probability the court would have waived the mandatory fines.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether counsel was ineffective for failing to file an affidavit of indigency under R.C. 2929.18(B)(1)	State: record lacks sufficient evidence of present and future inability to pay; no showing of prejudice	Elrod: counsel failed to advocate against mandatory fines and did not file indigency affidavit—PSI shows inability to pay	Court: Counsel was ineffective; PSI supported reasonable probability court would find Elrod indigent and avoid mandatory fines; reversed and remanded for resentencing

Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (1984) (two-part test for ineffective assistance of counsel)
State v. Bradley, 42 Ohio St.3d 136 (1989) (discussing prejudice standard under Strickland)
State v. Kole, 92 Ohio St.3d 303 (2001) (Ohio articulation of ineffective assistance principles)