Summary
The Supreme Court of Ohio held that a waiver of the right to a jury trial under R.C. 2945.05 must be written, signed, filed, made part of the record, and made in open court. The open-court requirement is satisfied only when the record shows that the defendant, while in court and in the presence of counsel if any, acknowledged the waiver to the trial court; a written waiver and a passing reference by the court were insufficient in this case.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- What requirements must a defendant's waiver of the right to trial by jury satisfy under R.C. 2945.05?
- Does R.C. 2945.05 require a trial court to conduct an extended colloquy with the defendant before accepting a jury waiver?
- Did Lomax's written jury waiver satisfy the statutory requirement that the waiver be made in open court?
Holdings
- A valid jury waiver under R.C. 2945.05 must be in writing, signed by the defendant, filed, made part of the record, and made in open court after arraignment and an opportunity to consult with counsel.
- To satisfy R.C. 2945.05's open-court requirement, the record must contain some evidence that the defendant, while in the courtroom and in the presence of counsel if any, acknowledged the jury waiver to the trial court.
- Lomax's jury waiver was invalid because the record contained no evidence that he acknowledged the waiver to the trial court in open court and in the presence of counsel.
Key quotations
“There must be, however, some evidence in the record of the proceedings that the defendant acknowledged the waiver to the trial court while in the presence of counsel, if any.” (¶ 42)
“To satisfy the “in open court” requirement in R.C. 2945.05, there must be some evidence in the record that the defendant while in the courtroom and in the presence of counsel, if any, acknowledged the jury waiver to the trial court.” (¶ 49)
Factual background
Lomax was indicted for the murder of Robert Christian after a confrontation at a family birthday party. Lomax admitted stabbing Christian but claimed self-defense, asserting that Christian had placed him in a chokehold. Lomax signed a written jury waiver that was filed and made part of the record, but the trial transcript contained only a passing reference by the court to an anticipated jury waiver and no acknowledgment by Lomax in open court.
Procedural history
Lomax was indicted for murder, waived a jury trial in writing, and was convicted after a bench trial. The trial court sentenced him to fifteen years to life. The Court of Appeals for Hamilton County reversed, concluding that the trial court's passing reference to a jury waiver did not comply with R.C. 2945.05. The Supreme Court of Ohio accepted the State's discretionary appeal and affirmed the appellate judgment.