STATE OF OHIO, PLAINTIFF-APPELLEE, v. TIMOTHY JON McVETY, DEFENDANT-APPELLANT.
CASE NO. 8-16-19
IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF OHIO THIRD APPELLATE DISTRICT LOGAN COUNTY
May 15, 2017
2017-Ohio-2796
Appeal from Logan County Common Pleas Court, Trial Court No. CR16-02-0055, Judgment Affirmed
Marc S. Triplett for Appellant
Eric C. Stewart for Appellee
SHAW, J.
{¶1} Defendant-appellant, Timothy Jon McVety (“McVety“), appeals the November 1, 2016 judgment of the Logan County Court of Common Pleas entering his conviction for one count of Insurance Fraud, in violation of
Facts and Procedural History
{¶2} On October 13, 2015, at approximately 4:30 p.m., Trevor Coomes was driving a combine owned by Buckeye Agricultural Testing on Rusk Road in Miami County when the drive coupler snapped causing the combine to fall into a roadside ditch and roll. Mr. Coomes, who was not injured, called his employer, Jeffrey Roeth, the owner of Buckeye Agricultural Testing, who immediately drove to the scene of the accident, which was two to three miles from his place of business. Mr. Roeth called Rob Hart, the owner of Hart‘s Towing and Recovery, Inc., to assist with extracting the combine from the ditch. Mr. Hart arrived to the accident at approximately 5:00 p.m. and quickly ascertained that the combine was too large for him to retrieve with his equipment. Mr. Hart called McVety, who owns McJack‘s Towing, LLC, for further assistance.
{¶3} McVety arrived to the scene and the people assembled there repeatedly attempted to upright the combine, but were unsuccessful. The situation was
{¶4} McVety told the other two tow companies that he would submit one bill for the work of the three towing services on the job. McJack‘s Towing submitted an invoice totaling $19,412.25 to Western Reserve Insurance Company. Representatives of Western Reserve were suspicious of the high amount on the invoice, the fact that invoice stated that all three companies had performed ten hours of work, which was inconsistent with the accident report, and that McJack‘s had already paid out $5,600 to Sandy‘s and $6,600 to Hart‘s. The fraud investigator with Western Reserve contacted Sandy‘s and Hart‘s independently, discovered that they had not been paid by McJack‘s, and asked them to separately submit invoices for their services on the job. Hart‘s submitted an invoice for $3,210 and Sandy‘s for $643.50. The Logan County Sheriff‘s Office was subsequently contacted as a result of the fraud investigation by Western Reserve.
{¶6} On September 15, 2016, a trial to the court was held, wherein several witnesses testified.
{¶7} On November 1, 2016, the trial court issued a judgment entry convicting McVety of a lesser included offense of fifth degree felony Insurance Fraud and sentencing him to three years of community control and thirty days in jail.
{¶8} McVety filed this appeal, asserting the following assignment of error.
THE TRIAL COURT‘S VERDICT FINDING APPELLANT GUILTY OF INSURANCE FRAUD IS NOT SUPPORTED BY SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE.
{¶9} In his sole assignment of error, McVety claims that the prosecutor failed to prove venue in this case. Specifically, he argues that the trial court erred in finding him guilty of Insurance Fraud because the State failed prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the fraudulent claim originated in Logan County.
{¶10} In a criminal case, venue is not a material element, but the State must still prove venue beyond a reasonable doubt. State v. Headley, 6 Ohio St.3d 475, 477 (1983). “Venue is satisfied where there is a sufficient nexus between the defendant and the county of the trial.” State v. Chintalapalli, 88 Ohio St.3d 43, 45
{¶11} While McVety failed to raise the issue of venue in the trial court, the failure to prove venue is plain error. See State v. Gardner, 42 Ohio App.3d 157, 158 (1st Dist.1987). At trial, the State adduced both direct and circumstantial evidence from numerous witnesses that McJack‘s office was located in Russells Point, which is situated in Logan County. Moreover, the invoice in question that represents the charges for the services of all three towing companies to be $19,412.25 and that Sandy‘s and Hart‘s were already paid $5,600 and $6,600 respectively, stated that McJack‘s business address was in Russells Point. In addition, this invoice with the same Logan County address was also attached to an email sent by a McJack‘s towing employee to the insurance adjuster. Thus, the record reflects substantial, credible evidence from which the trial court could have reasonably concluded that venue had been proved beyond a reasonable doubt. See State v. Gribble, 24 Ohio St.2d 85 (1970), paragraph two of the syllabus.
{¶12} Moreover, if the State has demonstrated that the alleged crime occurred in a particular location but failed to provide direct evidence that the
{¶13} Accordingly, the assignment of error is overruled and the judgment is affirmed.
Judgment Affirmed
WILLAMOWSKI and ZIMMERMAN, J.J., concur.
/jlr