State v. Jackson

Summary

The Ohio Eighth District Court of Appeals reversed Shayna Jackson’s conviction for misdemeanor endangering children under R.C. 2919.22(A). The court held that the State presented insufficient evidence that Jackson recklessly created a substantial risk to the child’s health or safety, including through the alleged physical acts and failure to obtain medical treatment.

Holdings

1. The State failed to present sufficient evidence that Jackson created a substantial risk to the child's health or safety. The brief incidents involving the child's neck, mouth, and nose, the hair pulling and ground incident, the belt lashes, and the failure to obtain medical treatment established at most a possibility or significant possibility of harm, not the strong possibility required by the statute.
2. The State failed to present sufficient evidence that Jackson recklessly created a substantial risk to the child's health or safety.
3. The trial court erred by denying Jackson's motion for acquittal because the evidence was insufficient to sustain the endangering-children conviction.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the State presented sufficient evidence that Jackson recklessly created a substantial risk to the child's health or safety under R.C. 2919.22(A).
2. Whether the trial court should have granted Jackson's Crim.R. 29 motion for acquittal.

Disposition

reversed