STATE OF OHIO v. BRANDON L. FRANKLIN
C.A. No. 29071
IN THE COURT OF APPEALS NINTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT
April 24, 2019
[Cite as State v. Franklin, 2019-Ohio-1513.]
SCHAFER, Judge.
APPEAL FROM JUDGMENT ENTERED IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS COUNTY OF SUMMIT, OHIO CASE No. CR-2017-04-1407
SCHAFER, Judge.
{1} Defendant-Appellant, Brandon L. Franklin, appeals the judgment of the Summit County Court of Common Pleas. For the reasons that follow, this Court affirms.
I.
{2} On March 25, 2017, while working as an Uber driver, Mr. Franklin picked up a woman, E.C., who was in need of a ride home from a bar at around 9:45 p.m. M.D., a friend of E.C.‘s with whom she had been drinking throughout that day and evening, summoned the ride through his Uber account after he and others in their group made the determination that E.C. had too much to drink. E.C.‘s friends assisted her into Mr. Franklin‘s vehicle because she was unable to walk on her own. Once she was in the vehicle, Mr. Franklin confirmed the correct address with E.C. He proceeded to drive her to her destination, while she fell asleep in the backseat. E.C. next recalls waking up in her bedroom, bent over her bed, while Mr. Franklin was anally penetrating her. E.C. reported this incident to police.
{3} On May 3, 2017, the Summit County Grand Jury charged Mr. Franklin with one count of sexual battery in violation of
{4} At trial, ten witnesses testified for the State, including E.C.‘s sister and the three friends who had been with her when she left for the Uber ride with Mr. Franklin. Mr. Franklin testified as the sole witness in his case. Following deliberations, the jury returned a verdict finding Mr. Franklin guilty. The trial court accepted the jury‘s verdict, found Mr. Franklin guilty, and imposed a sentence of fifty-four months imprisonment. Additionally, the trial court found, by clear and convincing evidence, that Mr. Franklin engaged in acts which indicate that he is a Tier III sex offender and adjudicated Mr. Franklin as such.
{5} Mr. Franklin has appealed, raising five assignments of error for our review.
II.
Assignment of Error I
The conviction is contrary to law in violation of the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution and Article I, [Section] 10 and [Section] 16 of the Ohio Constitution because the State failed to produce sufficient evidence of all essential elements.
{6} In his first assignment of error Mr. Franklin contends that there was insufficient evidence to support his conviction for sexual battery in violation
{7} A challenge to the sufficiency of a criminal conviction presents a question of law, which we review de novo. State v. Thompkins, 78 Ohio St.3d 380, 386 (1997). In carrying out this review, our “function * * * is to examine the evidence admitted at trial to determine whether such evidence, if believed, would convince the average mind of the defendant‘s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.” State v. Jenks, 61 Ohio St.3d 259 (1991), paragraph two of the syllabus. After such an examination and taking the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, we must decide whether “any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime proven beyond a reasonable doubt.” Id.
{8}
{9} Voluntary intoxication is recognized as “a mental or physical condition that could cause substantial impairment.” State v. Hansing, 9th Dist. Lorain No. 16CA011053, 2019-Ohio-739, ¶ 14. The fact of alcohol consumption on its own, however, does not necessarily evidence a
{10} In the present matter, E.C. began drinking with friends, M.D. and C.W., early in the afternoon of March 25, 2017. The group made stops at several establishments throughout the day, and E.C. imbibed different types of alcoholic beverages at each location. Later that afternoon or early evening, A.C.—sister of E.C. and girlfriend of M.D.—got off work. A.C. and another friend, C.R., met up with E.C., M.D., and C.W. at what would be the group‘s penultimate stop for drinks: a bar called Johnny J‘s. By all accounts, E.C. had consumed a significant amount of alcohol at that point and was noticeably intoxicated even before the group made their way to their final stop for drinks at South Point Tavern.
{11} As Mr. Franklin points out in his brief, several witnesses who had observed E.C. that evening testified as to the degree of her intoxication. M.D. testified that he drove the group from Johnny J‘s to South Point Tavern. According to M.D., E.C. was able to communicate, but her “manner of communication would indicate that she was very, very drunk and not coherent.” M.D. stated that E.C. “needed lots of help walking” and “definitely couldn‘t walk on her own.” Having concluded that E.C. needed to go home, M.D. called for a ride using the Uber app on his phone. Because E.C. lived with her father at that time, M.D. called her father to confirm that he was home and to let him know that E.C. would be arriving home via Uber. M.D. testified that, once the Uber arrived, he assisted E.C. into the car and informed Mr. Franklin that E.C. would be his passenger and that she was very drunk.
{12} C.W. also testified as to E.C.‘s demeanor throughout the afternoon and evening, and to her state of intoxication prior to her leaving the group for the Uber ride home with Mr. Franklin. C.W. testified that at South Point Tavern, E.C. was “[v]ery intoxicated” and “[M.D. and A.C.] basically had to help her out of the bar, into that Uber car.” C.W. stated that E.C. was able to communicate “[a] little bit but it was very unclear.”
{13} According to C.R., even while they were still at Johnny J‘s, E.C. was “not walking straight,” “slurring her words,” and definitely intoxicated. During the trip to South Point Tavern, C.R. described E.C. as “upbeat” and recalled E.C. “singing and dancing” in the car. At South Point Tavern, however, E.C. told C.R. that “she did not feel well, so [C.R.] took [E.C.] to the bathroom and she began to get very sick and began throwing up.” C.R. described E.C. as being “very intoxicated” at South Point Tavern, “the most intoxicated that [she] had ever seen her[,]” and “to the point that she really was not in a state of mind and she was too impaired [to] really kind of make like conversation.” C.R. testified that E.C. could not walk straight or stand without assistance and stated that it “would have been very likely that she would have fallen without help.”
{14} A.C. testified that her sister got sick shortly after arriving at South Point Tavern, and recalled that she was present in the restroom while E.C. was throwing up. She testified that E.C. was “drunk, and she couldn‘t stand, and she was falling in her seat[.]” A.C. stated that when it came time to walk E.C. out of the bar and to the Uber, E.C. had to put her arms around A.C. and M.D. “because she couldn‘t physically stand up herself.”
{15} E.C. testified that the last thing she remembers from that night was being at Johnny J‘s, and that she had no recollection of going to or being at South Point Tavern. According to E.C., she has no recollection of getting into the Uber, the ride home, or getting into
{16} Detective Benjamin Surblis of the City of Akron Police Department handled the investigation. He contacted Mr. Franklin who initially denied engaging in sexual conduct with E.C. Mr. Franklin later admitted to having vaginal sex with E.C., but not anal sex, and claimed the encounter was consensual. According to Det. Surblis, Mr. Franklin acknowledged that E.C. was drunk, that he had to shake her to wake her up when they arrived at her house, and that she was unsteady and asked for help to the house. However, Mr. Franklin told Det. Surblis that E.C. invited him into the house, asking him to come in and cuddle, and averred that he asked E.C. “Are you sure?” multiple times before they engaged in sexual conduct.
{17} Additionally, Mr. Franklin turned over to Det. Surblis a picture he had taken of E.C. naked in her bed. Mr. Franklin claimed that he took the picture after they had sex and at E.C.‘s request. He also claimed that E.C. asked him not to include her face in the picture in case he wanted to share it on social media. However, E.C. testified that she was not aware that Mr. Franklin had taken a picture of her until Det. Surblis showed her this picture.
{18} There is no dispute that Mr. Franklin engaged in sexual conduct with E.C., who was not the spouse of Mr. Franklin. Nor is it reasonably disputed or challenged on appeal that E.C. was intoxicated to the point of substantial impairment when Mr. Franklin picked her up that
{19} In support of his argument Mr. Franklin relies on a Seventh District case: State v. Eberth, 7th Dist. Mahoning No. 07-MA-196, 2008-Ohio-6596. Eberth, which addressed whether sexual battery was a lesser included offense of rape under
{20} Mr. Franklin‘s consent argument is without basis in the context of
{21} Mr. Franklin also asserts an alternative argument that “‘consent’ is at least an affirmative defense to sexual battery[.]” We decline to address Mr. Franklin‘s contention that consent is an affirmative defense, because a sufficiency of the evidence challenge is inapplicable when reviewing an affirmative defense. State v. Chapman, 9th Dist. Summit No. 28626, 2018-Ohio-1142, ¶ 16. “The burden of going forward with the evidence of an affirmative defense, and the burden of proof, by a preponderance of the evidence, for an affirmative defense, is upon the accused.”
{22} We conclude that the evidence, viewed in a light most favorable to the State, was sufficient to permit the jury to find Mr. Franklin guilty of sexual battery in violation of
Assignment of Error II
The conviction is contrary to manifest weight of the evidence and in violation of the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution and Article I, [Section] 10 of the Ohio Constitution.
{23} In his second assignment of error, Mr. Franklin contends that his conviction is against the manifest weight of the evidence. When considering whether a conviction is against the manifest weight of the evidence, this Court must consider the whole record, “weigh the evidence and all reasonable inferences, consider the credibility of witnesses and determine whether, in resolving conflicts in the evidence, the trier of fact clearly lost its way and created such a manifest miscarriage of justice that the conviction must be reversed and a new trial ordered.” State v. Otten, 33 Ohio App.3d 339, 340 (9th Dist. 1986). Courts are cautioned to only reverse a conviction on manifest weight grounds “in exceptional cases,” State v. Carson, 9th Dist. Summit No. 26900, 2013-Ohio-5785, ¶ 32, citing Otten at 340, where the evidence “weighs heavily against the conviction,” Thompkins, 78 Ohio St.3d at 387.
{24} The Ohio Supreme Court has identified eight factors that may be considered when deciding whether a conviction is against the weight of the evidence:
These include whether the evidence was uncontradicted, whether a witness was impeached, what was not proved, that the reviewing court is not required to accept the incredible as true, the certainty of the evidence, the reliability of the evidence, whether a witness’ testimony is self-serving, and whether the evidence is vague, uncertain, conflicting, or fragmentary.
(Emphasis sic.) State v. Apanovitch, 33 Ohio St.3d 19, 23-24 (1987). Mr. Franklin purports to discuss several of these factors in his effort to highlight the lack of evidence and testimony on the issue of whether E.C. consented to sexual conduct with Mr. Franklin.
{25} In his brief, Mr. Franklin asserts that E.C. “had no memory” and that his own “uncontested memory was ignored[,]” and argues:
This manifest weight challenge does not arise in a vacuum. Here all the State was required to do was to prove E.C. was drunk and had sex. That is not the law of sexual battery as charged.
Mr. Franklin relies on the same argument presented in his first assignment of error, focusing on the absence of evidence to show that E.C. did not consent to sexual conduct in light of Mr. Franklin‘s claim that E.C. consented. We rejected this argument in the first assignment of error, concluding that consent is not an essential element of sexual battery. Mr. Franklin did not articulate a separate argument to demonstrate how any evidence weighs against an essential element of sexual battery. Because Mr. Franklin has not shown that this is the exceptional case where the trier of fact lost its way in convicting him, we reject his manifest weight argument. See State v. Sadeghi, 9th Dist. Wayne No. 14AP0051, 2016-Ohio-744, ¶ 33. Consequently, Mr. Franklin‘s second assignment of error is overruled.
Assignment of Error III
R.C. 2907.03(A)(2) violates Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article I, [Section] 2 and [Section] 10 of the Ohio Constitution, as applied here to sexual conduct between adults in the absence of any testimony or finding of lack of consent.
{26} In his third assignment of error, Mr. Franklin claims that
{27} “A statute may be challenged as unconstitutional on the basis that it is invalid on its face or as applied to a particular set of facts.” State v. Lowe, 112 Ohio St.3d 507, 2007-Ohio-606, ¶ 17 (2007). “In an as-applied challenge, the challenger ‘contends that application of the statute in the particular context in which he has acted, or in which he proposes to act, [is] unconstitutional.‘” (Alteration sic.) Id. quoting Ada v. Guam Soc. of Obstetricians & Gynecologists, 506 U.S. 1011, (1992) (Scalia, J., dissenting). When a party challenges a statute on the grounds that it is “unconstitutional as applied to a particular set of facts, the party making the challenge bears the burden of presenting clear and convincing evidence of a presently existing set of facts that make the statute[] unconstitutional and void when applied to those facts.” Harrold v. Collier, 107 Ohio St.3d 44, 2005-Ohio-5334, ¶ 38.
{28} Mr. Franklin acknowledges that he did not raise this issue below and asserts that this Court should analyze the issue under the plain error standard. Plain error may only be invoked where the following three elements exist:
First, there must be an error, i.e., a deviation from the legal rule. * * * Second, the error must be plain. To be “plain” within the meaning of Crim.R. 52(B), an error must be an “obvious” defect in the trial proceedings. * * * Third, the error must have affected “substantial rights” * * * [and] affected the outcome of the trial.
State v. Consilio, 9th Dist. Summit No. 28409, 2017-Ohio-7913, ¶ 7, quoting State v. Barnes, 94 Ohio St.3d 21, 27 (2002). There is a discretionary aspect of
{29} In his brief, Mr. Franklin contends that
{30} Mr. Franklin admittedly engaged in sexual conduct with E.C. However, Mr. Franklin has not pointed this Court to any evidence in the record of this case to support his contention that his sexual encounter with E.C. was consensual for both parties. Thus, his argument that the statute is unconstitutional as applied to two consenting adults is wholly inapplicable in this case—where only Mr. Franklin acknowledges consenting to the sexual conduct. Mr. Franklin has not met his burden to show a presently existing set of facts that could make
Assignment of Error IV
The trial court erred [by] sentencing [Mr. Franklin] disproportionately to other offenders and summarily classifying him as a Tier III sex offender. The Tier III sex offender classification applied here constitutes cruel and unusual punishment under the Eight and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution and Article I, [Section] 9 of the Ohio Constitution, as grossly disproportionate to the nature of the offense and character of the offender.
{31} The wording of Mr. Franklin‘s fourth assignment of error suggests that his sentence and classification as a Tier III sex offender are unconstitutional as cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article 1, Section 9 of the Ohio Constitution. Mr. Franklin acknowledges that constitutional questions were not raised below and urges this Court to exercise its discretion to review his constitutional challenge for plain error1.
{32} “‘The failure to challenge the constitutionality of a statute in the trial court forfeits all but plain error on appeal, and the burden of demonstrating plain error is on the party asserting it.‘” State v. Detamore, 9th Dist. Wayne No. 15AP0026, 2016-Ohio-4682, ¶ 19, quoting State v. Quarterman, 140 Ohio St.3d 464, 2014-Ohio-4034, ¶ 2. As we recognized above, plain error may only be invoked where the following three elements exist:
First, there must be an error, i.e., a deviation from the legal rule. * * * Second, the error must be plain. To be “plain” within the meaning of Crim.R. 52(B), an error must be an “obvious” defect in the trial proceedings. * * * Third, the error must have affected “substantial rights” * * * [and] affected the outcome of the trial.
Consilio, 2017-Ohio-7913 at ¶ 7, quoting Barnes, 94 Ohio St.3d at 27. There is a discretionary aspect of
{33} The Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution states that “[e]xcessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” Ohio Constitution, Article I, Section 9 contains this same language prohibiting cruel
{34} Although he mentioned plain error in his brief, Mr. Franklin has not developed a plain error argument. See
{35} Within this assignment of error, Mr. Franklin also attempts to raise various other ill-defined issues unrelated to the assigned error. This Court has held that “[a]n appellant‘s captioned assignment of error ‘provides this Court with a roadmap on appeal and directs this Court‘s analysis.‘” State v. Pleban, 9th Dist. Lorain No. 10CA009789, 2011-Ohio-3254, ¶ 41,
{36} We conclude that Mr. Franklin failed to articulate an argument to demonstrate plain error with respect to any issues raised in this assignment of error. “We decline to create a plain error argument on [Mr. Franklin‘s] behalf and overrule his [fourth] assignment of error on that basis.” State v. Boatright, 9th Dist. Summit No. 28101, 2017-Ohio-5794, ¶ 8.
Assignment of Error V
[Mr. Franklin] was denied the effective assistance of trial counsel.
{37} In his fifth assignment of error, Mr. Franklin argues ineffective assistance of trial counsel. To establish ineffective assistance of counsel, Mr. Franklin must satisfy a two-prong test demonstrating (1) that counsel‘s performance was deficient, in that “counsel made errors so serious that counsel was not functioning as the ‘counsel’ guaranteed the defendant by the Sixth Amendment” and (2) that his defense was prejudiced by this deficient performance. Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 687 (1984). To demonstrate deficient performance, a defendant must show that the representation fell below an objective standard of reasonableness. Id. at 687-688. To show prejudice, a “defendant must prove that there exists a reasonable probability that, were it not for counsel‘s errors, the result of the trial would have been different.” State v. Bradley, 42 Ohio St.3d 136 (1989), paragraph three of the syllabus. However, “a court must indulge a strong presumption that counsel‘s conduct falls within the wide range of reasonable professional assistance[.]” Strickland at 689. Further, this Court “need not address both prongs of the Strickland test should it find that [Mr. Franklin] failed to prove either.” State v. Ray, 9th Dist. Summit No. 22459, 2005-Ohio-4941, ¶ 10.
{38} Franklin contends that his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to raise or use the affirmative defense of consent, failing to question witnesses regarding consent, and failing to object to statements made by the State at closing argument regarding the absence of the issue of consent in the jury instructions and the definition of the offense of sexual battery. Each of these arguments rely on Mr. Franklin‘s contention that consent, or lack of consent, is an implied element or affirmative defense to sexual battery. As we stated in the first assignment of error, consent is not an element of
{39} Additionally, Mr. Franklin argues that his trial counsel‘s performance was deficient because he failed to request a “consent jury instruction” despite there being “enough evidence in the record to support a claim of consent.” Mr. Franklin speculates that, given such an instruction, the jury “might have concluded that [Mr.] Franklin had acted with consent.” We reiterate that consent is not an essential element of sexual battery under
{40} Finally, Mr. Franklin argues that trial counsel‘s performance was deficient for failing to review a presentence investigation report. Mr. Franklin‘s argument is based on his flawed claim that the presentence investigation report was “damning in error[.]” According to Mr. Franklin, if trial counsel had reviewed the presentence investigation report, counsel could have challenged the conclusions in the report stating that Mr. Franklin “took advantage of an intoxicated female who placed her trust in him to give her a ride home as part of his employment” as an Uber driver, and challenged the statement that he had sex with a victim who was unable to provide consent to intercourse due to her state of intoxication. (Bold sic.) Mr. Franklin has not demonstrated the falsity or impropriety of these statements in the presentence investigation report, but again asserts the irrelevant issue of the absence of proof as to a lack of consent. Mr. Franklin has not met his burden to show any probability that, had trial counsel reviewed the report, the outcome of the trial would have been any different.
{41} Mr. Franklin has failed to demonstrate ineffective assistance of counsel and his fifth assignment of error is overruled.
III.
{42} Each of Mr. Franklin‘s five assignments of error is overruled. The judgment of the Summit County Court of Common Pleas is affirmed.
Judgment affirmed.
There were reasonable grounds for this appeal.
We order that a special mandate issue out of this Court, directing the Court of Common Pleas, County of Summit, State of Ohio, to carry this judgment into execution. A certified copy of this journal entry shall constitute the mandate, pursuant to
Immediately upon the filing hereof, this document shall constitute the journal entry of judgment, and it shall be file stamped by the Clerk of the Court of Appeals at which time the period for review shall begin to run.
Costs taxed to Appellant.
JULIE A. SCHAFER
FOR THE COURT
TEODOSIO, P. J. CONCURS.
CARR, J. CONCURS IN JUDGMENT ONLY.
APPEARANCES:
MARK H. LUDWIG, Attorney at Law, for Appellant.
SHERRI BEVAN WALSH, Prosecuting Attorney, and C. RICHLEY RALEY, JR., Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, for Appellee.