State v. Nurse, 2013 Ohio 785

On September 26, 2011, four men including Terrell Nurse planned to rob Reba Alexander and Jaunte Smith at their home.
The home invasion involved a gun; the group allegedly sought money and valuables, including nearly $10,000 in financial aid funds.
Nurse was convicted after a bench trial of aggravated burglary and two counts of aggravated robbery, each with an underlying firearm specification, resulting in a seven-year aggregate sentence.
Evidence included co-defendant testimony, Detective Irvine’s interview with Nurse admitting presence at the scene, and Nurse’s admissions to leaving with the other robbers.
The trial court denied Crim.R. 29 motions and the State presented evidence supporting the charged offenses; Nurse appealed raising five assignments of error.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Sufficiency of the evidence	Nurse contends the State failed to prove aggravated robbery/burglary beyond a reasonable doubt.	Nurse argues the evidence did not show participation in the crimes.	Sufficiency affirmed; evidence supports convictions.
Weight of the evidence	Convictions are against the manifest weight because Shellman’s testimony was unreliable.	Weight should be assessed; Shellman credibility undermines but other evidence supports guilt.	Weight not threatened; convictions affirmed.
Hearsay and 803(2) error	Ms. Alexander’s testimony about Smith’s statements was inadmissible hearsay.	Any error was harmless and not outcome-determinative.	No reversible error; any error harmless.
Sentencing compliance with RC 2929.19(B)(2)(g)	Court failed to include required notification regarding earned credits.	No such provision existed at the time; error not affecting substantial rights.	No reversible error; substantial rights not affected.
Ineffective assistance of counsel	Failure to object to missing sentencing notification was ineffective.	Any deficiency was harmless; no reasonable probability of a different outcome.	Ineffective assistance claim overruled; harmless error.

State v. Slevin, 2012-Ohio-2043 (9th Dist. No. 25956 (2012)) (sufficiency review and standard of review for Crim.R. 29)
State v. Williams, 2009-Ohio-6955 (9th Dist. No. 24731 (2009)) (sufficiency and de novo review fundamentals)
State v. Jenks,, 61 Ohio St.3d 259 (1991) (direct and circumstantial evidence standard; standard for sufficiency)
State v. Otten, 33 Ohio App.3d 339 (9th Dist. 1986) (weight of the evidence and credibility assessment guidance)