State v. Tolliver, 2022 Ohio 3431

Defendant Dennez Tolliver pled guilty to felonious assault and having weapons while under disability based on a February 24, 2021 incident.
On November 4, 2021 the trial court imposed community-control sanctions and informed Tolliver of definite prison ranges for violation but did not address the Reagan Tokes Law or reserve an indefinite sentence; the November 4 hearing transcript is not in the record.
The state appealed, arguing the trial court plainly erred by failing to reserve an indefinite Reagan Tokes sentence.
Tolliver later violated community control; on January 18, 2022 the court terminated community control and resentenced him to concurrent prison terms (two years on the felonious‑assault count, 18 months on the weapons count).
The state did not appeal the post‑violation prison sentence. The Eighth District subsequently resolved intra‑district conflict by rejecting constitutional challenges to Reagan Tokes in an en banc Delvallie decision.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the trial court plainly erred by not reserving an indefinite Reagan Tokes sentence when imposing community control	State: Trial court should have reserved an indefinite sentence under Reagan Tokes and failing to do so was plain error	Tolliver: Issue moot because community control was terminated and he was resentenced to prison; state did not appeal the new sentence	Dismissed as moot; even if considered, plain‑error review would not warrant relief given unsettled law at the time and lack of developed argument from the state
Whether the appeal remains justiciable after resentencing following a community‑control violation	State: (implicit) original sentencing error remains reviewable	Tolliver: Resentencing rendered the original reservation issue irrelevant; state did not challenge resentencing	Court: Moot — second sentencing is a new sentence; failure to appeal the post‑violation sentence defeats the claimed error

State v. Jackson, 81 N.E.3d 1237 (Ohio 2016) (after community‑control violation, trial court conducts a new sentencing hearing and resents the offender)
State v. Fraley, 821 N.E.2d 995 (Ohio 2004) (same: community control violation leads to a new sentence)
State v. Heinz, 56 N.E.3d 965 (Ohio 2016) (describing second sentencing after community control revocation)
State v. Delvallie, 173 N.E.3d 544 (8th Dist.) (en banc decision rejecting constitutional challenges to Reagan Tokes Law)
State v. Harper, 159 N.E.3d 248 (Ohio 2020) (sentencing errors must be raised on direct appeal from judgment of conviction)
State v. Rogers, 38 N.E.3d 860 (Ohio 2015) (plain error is discretionary and requires showing of obvious error affecting a substantial right)
State v. Barnes, 759 N.E.2d 1240 (Ohio 2001) (plain‑error framework and caution where Supreme Court has not definitively ruled)