State v. Howell, 2015 Ohio 3428

Defendant Howell was convicted by the Belmont County Common Pleas Court of aggravated assault (R.C. 2903.12(A)(2)), a fourth-degree felony, after a 2013 incident in which he struck Robert Stokes with a baseball bat during a dispute at a relative's home and STOKES suffered a broken arm.
The State dismissed aggravated burglary and amended felonious assault to aggravated assault as part of a plea deal in June 2014.
On July 2, 2014, Howell pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and received an 18-month sentence, the maximum allowed by law.
Howell appealed his sentence on the grounds that the trial court erred by imposing the maximum term.
The Seventh District acknowledged disagreement among Ohio courts on the proper standard of review for felony sentencing but affirmed the sentence under whichever standard applied.
The court held that, even under the applicable standard, the 18-month sentence was supported by the record.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the 18-month term for aggravated assault was properly imposed.	Howell argues the sentence is excessive and not supported by the factors.	Howell contends the trial court failed to properly apply sentencing factors.	The sentence is affirmed; the 18-month term is supported.

State v. Kalish, 120 Ohio St.3d 23 (Ohio 2008) (establishes Kalish test for reviewing felony sentences (clear error/abuse of discretion or contrary to law))
State v. Hill, 2014-Ohio-919 (Ohio 7th Dist.) (discusses standard of review for felony sentencing in the Seventh District)
State v. Wellington, 2015-Ohio-1359 (Ohio 7th Dist.) (discusses whether Kalish or statutory review applies post-R.C. 2953.08(G))
State v. Marcum, 141 Ohio St.3d 1453 (Ohio Supreme Court 2015) (certified question on the proper standard of review after R.C. 2953.08(G))