State v. Linkous, 2013 Ohio 5853

Background

Appellant Raymond Linkous was convicted by jury in Scioto County on multiple counts including aggravated murder (A), aggravated murder (B), murder, aggravated arson, arson, three counts of tampering with evidence, kidnapping, and conspiracy; he received a total term of life without parole plus 29 years.
Indictment (June 26, 2012) charged aggravated murder, murder, aggravated arson, arson, tampering with evidence, kidnapping, and conspiracy to murder/arson; involved accomplices David Gerald, Thomas Steinhauer, and Felipe Lopez's murder via burning in a pickup truck.
The victim, Lopez, was stabbed, bludgeoned, and burned inside a maroon Chevy S-10 pickup; a fire injured or killed Lopez while accomplices concealed the body and removed evidence.
Hatchet and knife were lost after the BCI analysis, but the state introduced testimony from the analyst; chain of custody up to testing supported admissibility of DNA results from the hatchet.
During trial, defense sought to call Connie Hammond; court questioned her regarding Fifth Amendment privilege and excused her testimony to avoid self-incrimination.
Appellant appealed on five assignments of error challenging DNA authentication, kidnapping-merger issues, witness self-incrimination admonition, involuntary manslaughter instruction, and manifest weight of the aggravated arson conviction.

Issues

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
DNA evidence admissibility	Linkous contends loss of weapon taints authentication.	Linkous argues broken chain of custody undermines authentication of DNA from hatchet.	DNA evidence properly authenticated despite loss; chain up to testing sufficient; weight, not admissibility, affected.
Sufficiency and merger of kidnapping	State asserts sufficient evidence of restraint and movement; merger with aggravated murder improper if separate animus exists.	Linkous argues kidnapping was not shown since victim entered truck voluntarily and remained unrestrained.	Sufficient evidence supports restraint; kidnapping not merged with aggravated murder; separate animus shown.
Witness self-incrimination admonition	State notifies witness of possible indictment; ensures protection against self-incrimination.	Linkous argues court improperly informed the witness she was not required to testify.	Trial court properly evaluated Fifth Amendment privilege; excused witness without error.
Involuntary manslaughter instruction	State argues no lesser included offense warranted given intent to kill.	Linkous contends involuntary manslaughter instruction should be given because victim may have been dead when fire started.	No basis for involuntary manslaughter instruction; evidence supports intent to kill.
Manifest weight of aggravated arson	State asserts substantial evidence created a substantial risk of harm to others.	Linkous contends evidence fails to show substantial risk to persons other than himself.	Conviction not against the manifest weight; substantial evidence of risk to bystanders and responders supported.

Key Cases Cited

State v. Brown, 107 Ohio App.3d 194 (3d Dist. 1995) (chain of custody as weight not admissibility)
State v. Conley, 32 Ohio App.2d 54 (3d Dist. 1971) (chemical analysis and chain of custody timing)
State v. Winfield, 4th Dist. Ross No. 1641 (1991) (analysis timing and evidence preservation)
Hoffman v. United States, 341 U.S. 479 (1951) (privilege against self-incrimination; danger threshold)
State v. Reiner, 93 Ohio St.3d 601 (2001) (court's duty to determine privilege validity)
State v. Johnson, 112 Ohio St.3d 210 (2006) (merger analysis for kidnapping and aggravated murder)
State v. Jells, 53 Ohio St.3d 22 (1990) (Vazirani test for allied offenses)
State v. Underwood, 124 Ohio St.3d 365 (2010) (merger under 2941.25; standard de novo)
State v. Nguyen, 2013-Ohio-3170 (4th Dist. 2013) (merger analysis framework post Johnson)
State v. Logan, 60 Ohio St.2d 126 (1979) (separate animus for kidnapping; protective asportation standard)
State v. Delawder, 4th Dist. Scioto No. 10CA3344 (2012) (merger methodology for multiple counts)
State v. Keenan, 81 Ohio St.3d 133 (1998) (non-allied import of aggravated murder and kidnapping)