State v. Johnson, 2019 Ohio 4265

Defendant Mershaun M. Johnson was indicted for multiple offenses arising from an April 7, 2016 shooting that killed Charles Staten; authorities recovered a revolver with six spent rounds and Johnson's DNA.
Johnson pleaded guilty to the lesser-included offense of voluntary manslaughter (with a three-year firearm specification) and to discharge of a firearm on prohibited premises (with a three-year firearm specification).
The parties jointly recommended a 22-year mandatory aggregate prison term (14 years for manslaughter consecutive to 8 years for the firearm offense); the trial court instead imposed an aggregate 25-year sentence and ordered the convictions to run consecutively.
Johnson did not object in the trial court to non-merger; he appealed claiming the two convictions should have merged for sentencing under R.C. 2941.25 and constitutional protections.
The appellate court reviewed the issue for plain error, examined whether the offenses were allied under the Ruff test (conduct, animus, import), and considered whether the harms were separate and identifiable.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether voluntary manslaughter and discharge of a firearm on/near prohibited premises must merge for sentencing	State: offenses are distinct; discharge statute protects public safety separate from the victim-specific harm	Johnson: both convictions rest on the same act(s) of firing the gun and produced the same resulting harm (death), so they should merge	Court: Affirmed — no plain error; offenses do not merge because they cause separate harms (victim's death vs. public danger)

State v. Ruff, 143 Ohio St.3d 114 (2015) (establishes allied-offenses analysis: conduct, animus, and import)
State v. Williams, 134 Ohio St.3d 482 (2012) (appellate review applies law de novo when deciding merger under R.C. 2941.25)
State v. Underwood, 124 Ohio St.3d 365 (2010) (failure to merge allied offenses constitutes plain error)