State v. Lovett, 2022 Ohio 1693

Devion Lovett shot at two men after approaching their car at a gas station; one man (Bieker) was hit in the thigh. Lovett later admitted firing and aiming at one victim in jail calls.
Lovett was indicted on multiple felonious-assault counts (firearm specifications) and improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle; he claimed self-defense/defense of another.
Pretrial delays included defense discovery requests, a bond-motion, defense counsel withdrawal/substitution, and court scheduling changes tied to COVID-19 emergency orders.
The jury convicted Lovett on the counts related to Bieker and the firearm specifications; a mistrial on a separate count led to a no-contest plea on that count; parties agreed an aggregate 6 to 7½ year sentence.
On appeal Lovett raised two assignments of error: (1) statutory and constitutional speedy-trial violations and (2) denial of a jury instruction on self-defense.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Speedy-trial (statutory)	Delays were tolled by defense discovery, defense motions, substitution of counsel, and a reasonable sua sponte continuance for COVID-19; therefore trial timely under R.C. 2945.72	Trial was not brought within statutory speedy-trial window and motion to dismiss should have been granted	No error: continuances (including pandemic-related sua sponte continuance and delays caused by defense motions/counsel change) tolled time; trial timely held
Self-defense jury instruction	Evidence showed Lovett provoked the encounter, used deadly force, and failed to retreat, so instruction unwarranted	Lovett presented evidence of fearing imminent harm and fired to protect himself and his girlfriend; requested instruction should have been given	No abuse of discretion: Lovett was at fault in creating the confrontation, used disproportionate lethal force, and could have retreated, so self-defense instruction properly denied

Brecksville v. Cook, 75 Ohio St.3d 53, 661 N.E.2d 706 (Ohio 1996) (speedy-trial statutes must be strictly construed against the government)
In re Disqualification of Fleegle, 161 Ohio St.3d 1263, 163 N.E.3d 609 (Ohio 2020) (pandemic justified reasonable continuances and judges may continue trials case-by-case for health and safety)
State v. Brown, 98 Ohio St.3d 121, 781 N.E.2d 159 (Ohio 2002) (discovery requests toll speedy-trial time)
State v. Thomas, 77 Ohio St.3d 323, 673 N.E.2d 1339 (Ohio 1997) (elements required to claim self-defense)
State v. Willford, 49 Ohio St.3d 247, 551 N.E.2d 1279 (Ohio 1990) (duty to retreat before using lethal force)
State v. Ramey, 2012-Ohio-6187, 986 N.E.2d 462 (2d Dist.) (sua sponte continuance must be journalized with reasons to assess reasonableness)