State v. Jones

Summary

The Eighth District Court of Appeals of Ohio affirmed Lavelle Jones’s consecutive sentences for receiving stolen property and fraudulent actions concerning a vehicle identification number. The court held that the trial court made the required findings under Ohio Revised Code 2929.14(C)(4) and that the record supported those findings, particularly in light of Jones’s related federal convictions and parole status.

Holdings

1. A trial court imposing consecutive sentences must make the findings required by R.C. 2929.14(C)(4) at the sentencing hearing and incorporate those findings into the sentencing entry.
2. The record did not clearly and convincingly fail to support the trial court’s findings, so the consecutive sentences were lawful and were affirmed.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the trial court’s findings that consecutive sentences were necessary to protect the public or punish Jones and were not disproportionate to the seriousness of his conduct were supported by the record.
2. Whether the trial court properly applied the statutory requirements governing consecutive sentences.

Disposition

affirmed