THE STATE EX REL. CARNAIL, APPELLANT, v. McCORMICK, JUDGE, APPELLEE.
No. 2009-1635
Supreme Court of Ohio
Submitted March 9, 2010—Decided June 16, 2010.
126 Ohio St.3d 124, 2010-Ohio-2671
Facts
{¶ 1} Appellant, E‘Yen Carnail, appeals from a judgment dismissing his complaint for a writ of mandamus to compel appellee, Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas Judge Timothy McCormick, to conduct a new sentencing hearing pursuant to
{¶ 2} In November 1999, Judge McCormick convicted Carnail, upon his guilty plea, of two counts of rape in violation of
{¶ 3} Nine years later, in 2008, Carnail filed a motion in the common pleas court to correct the “illegal sentence.” Shortly therеafter, Judge McCormick denied the motion. The court of appeals dismissed Carnail‘s appeal based on res judicata.
{¶ 4} In June 2009, Carnail filed a complaint in the Court of Appeals for Cuyahoga County for a writ of mandamus to compel Judge McCormick1 to conduct a new sentencing hearing to add the proper requirements of postrelease control or, in the alternative, to issue a final, appealable order. Judge McCormiсk filed a
{¶ 5} This cause is now before us upon Carnail‘s appeal as of right.
Legal Analysis
{¶ 6} Carnail asserts that the court of appeals erred in dismissing his mandamus complaint. “A court can dismiss a mandamus action under
{¶ 7} To be entitled to the writ, Carnail must establish a clear legal right to the requested relief, a corresponding clear legal duty on the part of Judge McCormick to provide it, and the lack of an adequate remedy in the ordinary course of law. State ex rel. Husted v. Brunner, 123 Ohio St.3d 288, 2009-Ohio-5327, 915 N.E.2d 1215, ¶ 8.
Postrelease Control for Rape Convictions
{¶ 8} Carnail‘s mandamus claim is predicated upon his contention that his sentence is void because it did not include postrelease control for his rape convictions.
{¶ 9} Judge McCormick initially claims on appeal, as he did in his motion to dismiss Carnail‘s complaint in the proceedings below, that “because [Carnail] was sentenced to a mandatory life sentence for rape, which is an indefinite sentence, the trial court was not required to advise [him] of post-release control.” Although the court of appeals did not rely on this argument to dismiss Carnail‘s mandamus complaint, “[r]eviewing courts are not аuthorized to reverse a correct judgment on the basis that some or all of the lower court‘s reasons are erroneous.” State ex rel. McGrath v. Ohio Adult Parole Auth., 100 Ohio St.3d 72, 2003-Ohio-5062, 796 N.E.2d 526, ¶ 8. Therefore, we first determine whether postrelease control was required for Carnail‘s rape convictions.
{¶ 10}
{¶ 11} “(B) Each sentence to a prison term for a felony of the first degree, for a felony of the second degree, for a felony sex offense, or for a felony of the third degree that is not a felony sex offense and in the commission of which the offender caused or threatened to cause physical harm to a person shall include a requirement that the offender be subject to a period of post-release control imposed by the parole board after the offender‘s release from imprisonment.
{¶ 12} “(1) For a felony of the first degree or for a felony sex offense, five years.”
{¶ 13} In construing this statute, “our paramount concern is the legislative intent” in enacting it. State ex rel. Steele v. Morrissey, 103 Ohio St.3d 355, 2004-Ohio-4960, 815 N.E.2d 1107, ¶ 21. To discern this intent, we must “read words and phrases in context according to the rules of grammar and common usage.” State ex rel. Lee v. Karnes, 103 Ohio St.3d 559, 2004-Ohio-5718, 817 N.E.2d 76, ¶ 23.
{¶ 14} After applying the rules of grammar and common usage to
{¶ 15} In arguing against this result, Judge McCormick cites
{¶ 16}
{¶ 17} “Any pеriod of post-release control shall commence upon an offender‘s actual release from prison. If an offender is serving an indefinite prison term or a life sentence in addition to a stated prison term, the offender shall serve the period of post-release control in the following manner:
{¶ 18} “(a) If a period of post-release control is imposed upon the offender and if the offender also is subject to a period of parole under a life sentence or an indefinite sentence, and if the period of post-release control ends prior to the period of parole, the offender shall be supervised on parole. The offender shall receive credit for post-release control supervision during the period of parole. The offender is not eligible for final release under section
{¶ 19} “(b) If a period of post-release control is imposed upon the offender and if the offender also is subject to a period of parole under an indefinite sentence, and if the period of parole ends prior to the period of post-release control, the offender shall be supervised on post-release control. The requirements of parole
{¶ 20}
{¶ 21} Our decision in Clark, 119 Ohio St.3d 239, 2008-Ohio-3748, 893 N.E.2d 462, is also inapposite. In that case, we merely held that a trial court was not required to discuss postrelease control or parole in a colloquy with a defendant seeking to plead guilty to aggravated murder, because postrelease control was not required for persons convicted of unclassified felonies like aggravated murder. Id. at ¶ 36 (“an individual sentenced for aggravated murder such as [the defendant] is not subject to postrelease control, because that crime is an unclassified felony to which the postrelease-control statute does not apply“). By contrast, the plain language of
{¶ 22} Insofar as Judge McCormick also cites decisions from one court of appeals that hold to the contrary, they are inapposite because they fail to apply the manifest language of
{¶ 23} In addition, these Eighth Appellate District cases emanate from that appellate court‘s two-to-one decision in State v. Linen (Dec. 15, 2000), Cuyahoga App. Nos. 74070 and 74071, 2000 WL 1876409, in which the majority of the appellate panel held that postrelease control was inapplicable to defendants sentenced under
{¶ 24} Upon the satisfaction of certain conditions, including the serving of the minimum sentence, the parole board‘s termination of its control over the defendant‘s sentence, and the trial court‘s determination by clear and convincing evidence that the offender is unlikely to commit a sexually violent offense in the future, the court can terminate the indefinite sentence.
{¶ 25} As the dissenting opinion in Linen notes, the majority‘s position in that case is untenable:
{¶ 26} “Pursuant to the express terms of
{¶ 27} Similarly, the Sixth District Court of Appeals has expressly held that rape convictions require postrelease control as part of the sentence, that postrelease control applies to indefinite or life sentences, and that
{¶ 28} “Rape is a felony of the first degree. As a classified felony, offenders convicted of rape must be given postrelease control * * *.
{¶ 29} “Hernandez points, however, to
{¶ 30} In this regard, the Sixth District‘s interpretation of the pertinent provisions is more consistent with their plain language than the Eighth District‘s construction. This plain language requires no additional statutory interpretation. See Symmes Twp. Bd. of Trustees v. Smyth (2000), 87 Ohio St.3d 549, 553, 721 N.E.2d 1057 (“When the language of a statute is plain and unambiguous and cоnveys a clear and definite meaning, there is no need for this court to apply the rules of statutory interpretation“). And insofar as general policy considerations might support subjecting a defendant only to the parole provisions of
{¶ 31} Therefore, for the foregoing reasons, Carnail‘s sentence on his conviction for two rape charges was required to include a five-year term of postrelease control.
Mandamus to Compel Judge to Issue Final, Appealable Order
{¶ 32} Carnail claims that because his sentencing entry does not contain the mandatory term of postrelease control, it is void and he is entitled to a writ of mandamus to compel Judge McCormick to issuе a sentencing entry that constitutes a final, appealable order. Although procedendo is the more appropriate remedy, “mandamus will lie when a trial court has refused to render, or unduly delayed rendering, a judgment.” State ex rel. Reynolds v. Basinger, 99 Ohio St.3d 303, 2003-Ohio-3631, 791 N.E.2d 459, ¶ 5. The judgment entry of conviction and sentence specified in
{¶ 33} We have consistently held that “[i]f the trial court refuses upon request or motion to journalize its decision, either party may compel the court to act by filing a writ of mandamus or a writ of procedendo” because “[a]bsent journalization of the judgment, [a party] cannot appeal it.” (Emphasis deleted.) State ex rel. Grove v. Nadel (1998), 81 Ohio St.3d 325, 327, 691 N.E.2d 275, quoting Kennedy v. Cleveland (1984), 16 Ohio App.3d 399, 402, 16 OBR 469, 476 N.E.2d 683; Cleveland v. Trzebuckowski (1999), 85 Ohio St.3d 524, 527, 709 N.E.2d 1148.
{¶ 34} In State ex rel. Culgan v. Medina Cty. Court of Common Pleas, 119 Ohio St.3d 535, 2008-Ohio-4609, 895 N.E.2d 805, which is the primary authority relied upon by Carnail, after a common pleas court judge had denied a motion for resentencing to issue a judgment that complied with
{¶ 35} Judge McCormick‘s 1999 sentencing entry for Carnail failed to include the statutorily required five-year term of postrelease control.
{¶ 36} Ohio appellate courts have uniformly recognized that void judgments do not constitute final, appealable orders. See generally Brown v. Brown, 183 Ohio App.3d 384, 2009-Ohio-3589, 917 N.E.2d 301, ¶ 21; State v. Gilmer, 160 Ohio App.3d 75, 2005-Ohio-1387, 825 N.E.2d 1180, ¶ 6; State v. Whitehouse, Lorain App. No. 09CA009581, 2009-Ohio-6504, 2009 WL 4758812, ¶ 8; Pauer v. Langaa, Cuyahoga App. No. 83232, 2004-Ohio-2019, 2004 WL 859174, ¶ 12; Reed v. Montgomery Cty. Bd. of Mental Retardation & Dev. Disabilities (Apr. 27, 1995), Franklin App. No. 94APE10-1490, 1995 WL 250810, *4. The 1999 sentencing entry was not a final, appealable order, because it was void for failing to include the statutorily required mandatory term of postrelease control.
{¶ 37} Consistent with our holding in Culgan, once Judge McCormick denied Carnail‘s motion to correct the 1999 sentence, Carnail was entitled to the requested extraordinary relief in mandamus to compel the judge to issue a new sentencing entry to comply with
{¶ 38} Consequently, the court of appeals erred in dismissing Carnail‘s mandamus action.
Conclusion
{¶ 39} Therefore, in accordance with precedent, we revеrse the judgment of the court of appeals dismissing Carnail‘s mandamus action and grant a writ of mandamus to compel Judge McCormick to issue a sentencing entry that complies with the postrelease-control provisions of
Judgment reversed and writ granted.
PFEIFER, O‘CONNOR, O‘DONNELL, and CUPP, JJ., concur.
LUNDBERG STRATTON and LANZINGER, JJ., dissent.
BROWN, C.J., not participating.
LANZINGER, J., dissenting.
{¶ 41} The majority is correct that rape in violation of
{¶ 42} Carnail‘s prison term may be terminated or modified only by parole in accordance with
{¶ 43} I agree with the Eighth District‘s reading of
{¶ 44} “(a) If a period of post-release cоntrol is imposed upon the offender and if the offender also is subject to a period of parole under a life sentence or an indefinite sentence, and if the period of post-release control ends prior to the period of parole, the offender shall be supervised on parole. The offender shall receive credit for post-release control supervision during the period of parole. The offender is not eligible for final release under section
{¶ 45} “(b) If a period of post-release control is imposed upon the offender and if the offender also is subject to a period of parole under an indefinite sentence, and if the period of parole ends prior to the period of post-release control, the offender shall be supervised on post-release control. The requirements of parole supervision shall be satisfied during the post-release control period.”
{¶ 46} Carnail was sentenced to two concurrent life terms for rape, with parole eligibility after ten years. These are indefinite sentences, not sentences with a stated term. Therefore, a trial court may ultimately terminate Carnail‘s prison term pursuant to
{¶ 47} Instead, after awarding
{¶ 48} Because I would hold that Carnail was not subject to mandatory postrelease control, I dissent from the majority‘s opinion and would deny the writ of mandamus.
LUNDBERG STRATTON, J., concurs in the foregoing opinion.
E‘Yen Carnail, pro se.
William D. Mason, Cuyahoga County Prosecuting Attorney, and James E. Moss, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, for appellee.
