State v. Smith, 2018 Ohio 2938

Willie Smith was convicted in 1995 of aggravated murder and kidnapping; sentenced to life for aggravated murder and 10–25 years for kidnapping to run consecutively.
The jury acquitted Smith of the related felony-murder/firearm specification tied to the aggravated murder count.
Smith pursued multiple postconviction and new-trial motions over the years; earlier appeals and collateral attacks were unsuccessful.
In June 2017 Smith filed a common-law motion to correct a void judgment, arguing the not-guilty finding on the felony-murder specification effectively acquitted him of an essential element of aggravated murder.
The trial court denied the motion; Smith appealed, raising (1) that the conviction/sentence was void and (2) that the trial court failed to impose a mandatory consecutive sentence under former R.C. 2929.41(B)(3).

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether conviction/sentence is void because acquittal on a felony-murder specification negated an element of aggravated murder	State: Judgment is valid; prior rulings control	Smith: Not-guilty on specification operated as an acquittal of an element of aggravated murder, rendering the conviction void	Court: Smith’s claim is barred by res judicata; earlier direct-appeal argument resolved this issue and specifications do not alter principal-charge guilt; motion properly denied
Whether sentence was illegal for failing to impose a mandatory consecutive term under former R.C. 2929.41(B)(3)	State: Court imposed consecutive sentences as reflected in the record	Smith: Trial court failed to impose mandatory consecutive sentence required by statute	Court: Meritless — record shows consecutive sentences were imposed; no relief warranted

State v. Simpkins, 884 N.E.2d 568 (Ohio 2008) (a void judgment can be challenged at any time; voidness is distinct from issues barred by res judicata)