State v. Rollison, 101 N.E.3d 584

On Oct. 11, 2016 Rollison was indicted for Having Weapons While Under Disability (third-degree felony) after Frankie Newsome alleged Rollison brandished a shotgun at him.
Parties stipulated Rollison had a prior burglary conviction (an offense of violence) that created the disability to possess a firearm.
At the Jan. 5, 2017 jury trial the State presented five witnesses (including the victim, 9-1-1 operator, and officers); Rollison presented no witnesses or affirmative defense.
Evidence included Newsome’s authenticated 9-1-1 call, Newsome’s live testimony, Officer Ice’s recounting of Newsome’s statements, and Officer Musser’s testimony that a loaded .20-gauge shotgun was found within reach where Rollison sat on a nearby porch.
Jury convicted; trial court sentenced Rollison to 24 months’ imprisonment. Rollison appealed arguing ineffective assistance of counsel and that the verdict was against the manifest weight of the evidence.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether counsel was ineffective for not moving to strike two jurors for cause	State: counsel’s handling did not prejudice defendant; court removed jurors for cause	Rollison: counsel failed to challenge Zucker and Thomas for cause	Court: No deficiency — judge released both jurors for cause, counsel influenced removal and had peremptories preserved
Whether counsel was ineffective for not objecting to Officer Ice’s recounting of Newsome’s statements	State: counsel strategically used the statements to impeach Newsome; objections are trial strategy	Rollison: failure to object to hearsay/nonresponsive testimony prejudiced defense	Court: No ineffective assistance — decision was a permissible trial strategy and objections aren’t automatically required
Whether counsel was ineffective for not filing a discovery request pre-trial	State: discovery was ordered by court and exchanged; tactical choice presumed	Rollison: failure to request discovery prejudiced preparation	Court: No prejudice — discovery was provided and any failure to file request was not reversible error
Whether conviction was against the manifest weight of the evidence	State: jury heard 9-1-1 call, victim testimony, officer testimony, and saw the shotgun within reach; elements proven	Rollison: victim unreliable; officers didn’t see him holding the gun	Court: Affirmed — evidence supported possession and jury credibility determinations were not against manifest weight

Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (trial counsel performance standard)
Bradley v. State, 42 Ohio St.3d 136 (ineffective assistance requires deficient performance and prejudice)
Thompkins v. Ohio, 78 Ohio St.3d 380 (appellate role as thirteenth juror on weight review)
DeHass v. State, 10 Ohio St.2d 230 (credibility determinations for trier of fact)
Eskridge v. Ohio, 38 Ohio St.3d 56 (standard for sufficiency/weight review)
Hunter v. Ohio, 131 Ohio St.3d 67 (rare reversal on manifest weight)
Carter v. State, 72 Ohio St.3d 545 (strategic decisions on objections not per se deficient)
Holloway v. State, 38 Ohio St.3d 239 (failure to object not automatically ineffective)
Conway v. Ohio, 109 Ohio St.3d 412 (counsel’s objection failures evaluated in context of strategy)