State v. Ronald R. Phillips
| Decision Date | 27 February 2002 |
| Docket Number | 20692,02-LW-0781 |
| Parties | STATE OF OHIO, Appellee v. RONALD R. PHILLIPS, Appellant C.A. |
| Court | Ohio Court of Appeals |
APPEAL FROM JUDGMENT ENTERED IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS COUNTY OF SUMMIT, OHIO CASE No. CR 93 02 0207 (A)
Appellant, Ronald Ray Phillips, appeals from the judgment of the Summit County Court of Common Pleas denying his petition for postconviction relief. We affirm.
On January 18, 1993, Sheila Marie Evans, age three, died as a result of blunt force trauma to her abdomen. At that time Sheila's mother, Fae Evans, was dating Mr. Phillips, who was the father of her youngest child, Ronald, Jr. On the morning of January 18, 1993, Ms. Evans took Ronald, Jr. to a routine doctor's appointment, leaving Sheila and her younger sister in Mr. Phillips' care. When Ms. Evans returned, she called for her two daughters, but Sheila did not respond. Mr. Phillips found Sheila lying on her bed motionless, pale, and cold. Mr. Phillips attempted to revive Sheila, and the 9-1-1 emergency operator was called. Paramedics arrived and transported Sheila to Children's Hospital in Akron. Despite significant medical efforts, Sheila died later that day.
The Summit County Coroner, Dr. Cox, reported that Sheila had over one-hundred twenty-five bruises, many of which were inflicted within a few hours of death. He related that the blows to Sheila's abdomen had caused severe internal trauma, including internal hemorrhaging. During the autopsy, Dr. Cox also discovered that Sheila had suffered a severe injury to her duodenum approximately forty-eight hours prior to her death. Dr. Cox explained that, during that forty-eight hour period, Sheila would have experienced intense pain, vomiting, and an inability to eat, among other symptoms. The beating Sheila received on January 18, 1993 ruptured Sheila's already gangrenous duodenum.
Dr. Cox also discovered evidence that Sheila had been repeatedly anally penetrated over a period of time, including the morning of January 18, 1993. Based on the autopsy evidence, Mr. Cox concluded that Sheila most probably had been anally penetrated by a penis rather than a finger or other object. Later, Mr. Phillips admitted to anally penetrating Sheila with his penis prior to January 18, 1993, but denied doing so on the morning of her death. He, however, admitted to beating Sheila and to inserting his finger into her anus on January 18, 1993.
On August 18, 1993, Mr. Phillips was convicted of the aggravated murder of Sheila Marie Evans and was sentenced to death. He was also convicted and sentenced on one count of felonious sexual penetration and three counts of rape. This court upheld his convictions and sentences on direct appeal. State v. Phillips (Aug. 31, 1994), Summit App. No. 16487, unreported ("Phillips I"). The Ohio Supreme Court also affirmed the convictions and sentences. State v. Phillips (1995), 74 Ohio St.3d 72.
On September 20, 1996, Mr. Phillips filed a petition for postconviction relief, pursuant to former R.C. 2953.21, citing six substantive grounds for relief. On September 26, 1996, he amended his petition to include an additional four grounds for relief. Over one year later, on December 17, 1997, Mr. Phillips moved for leave to amend his petition, as he had just received voluminous documents from Summit County Children's Services regarding his family history, which he claimed were relevant to his substantive grounds for relief. On January 21, 1998, the trial court denied leave to amend the petition and dismissed Mr. Phillips' petition for postconviction relief without conducting an evidentiary hearing. Mr. Phillips timely appealed the decision.
On February 3, 1999, this court affirmed in part and reversed in part the decision of the trial court holding: 1) the trial court erred in issuing insufficient findings of fact and conclusions of law when it dismissed his petition without conducting a hearing, 2) Mr. Phillips' constitutional challenge to Ohio's postconviction relief system was either not ripe for review or was waived because he failed to raise the issue before the trial court, 3) the trial court properly denied Mr. Phillips' requests for discovery, 4) the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying Mr. Phillips leave to amend his petition, and 5) the trial court properly denied Mr. Phillips' motion for release of grand jury records. State v. Phillips (Feb. 3, 1999), Summit App. No. 18949, unreported ("Phillips II").
On remand, the trial court issued findings of fact and conclusions of law on each of Mr. Phillips' ten grounds for relief in support of its decision to dismiss the petition without conducting an evidentiary hearing. This appeal followed.
Phillips asserts five assignments of error for review. We will discuss each in due course.
In his first assignment of error, Mr. Phillips avers that the trial court improperly dismissed his petition because he presented sufficient operative facts and supporting evidence de hors the record to merit an evidentiary hearing. We disagree.
A postconviction proceeding is a collateral civil attack on a criminal conviction. State v. Calhoun (1999), 86 Ohio St.3d 279, 281. In order to obtain postconviction relief, a petitioner must show that "there was such a denial or infringement of the person's rights as to render the judgment void or voidable under the Ohio Constitution or the Constitution of the United States[.]" R.C. 2953.21; State v. Watson (1998), 126 Ohio App.3d 316, 323. Under R.C. 2953.21, a petitioner seeking postconviction relief is not automatically entitled to an evidentiary hearing. Calhoun, 86 Ohio St.3d at 282. Significantly, the Ohio Supreme Court has held that proper bases for dismissing a petition for postconviction relief without holding an evidentiary hearing include: 1) the failure of the petitioner to set forth sufficient operative facts to establish substantive grounds for relief, and 2) the operation of res judicata to bar the constitutional claims raised in the petition. Calhoun, 86 Ohio St.3d at paragraph two of the syllabus; State v. Lentz (1994), 70 Ohio St.3d 527, 530.
It is well settled that, before granting an evidentiary hearing, the trial court must determine whether the petitioner has set forth any substantive grounds for relief, namely "whether there are grounds to believe that 'there was such a denial or infringement of the person's rights as to render the judgment void or voidable under the Ohio Constitution or the Constitution of the United States.'" Calhoun, Ohio St.3d at 282-83, quoting R.C. 2953.21. Accordingly, "a trial court properly denies a defendant's petition for postconviction relief without holding an evidentiary hearing where the petition, the supporting affidavits, the documentary evidence, the files, and the records do not demonstrate that petitioner set forth sufficient operative facts to establish substantive grounds for relief." Calhoun, 86 Ohio St. 3d at paragraph two of the syllabus; see R.C. 2953.21(C).
Furthermore, before a hearing is granted in proceedings for postconviction relief upon a claim of ineffective assistance of trial counsel, the petitioner bears the initial burden to submit evidentiary material containing sufficient operative facts that demonstrate a substantial violation of any of defense counsel's essential duties to his client and prejudice arising from counsel's ineffectiveness. Calhoun, 86 Ohio St.3d at 289; State v. Jackson (1980), 64 Ohio St.2d 107, syllabus; see, also Strickland v. Washington (1984), 466 U.S. 668, 687, 80 L.Ed.2d 674, 693.
Another proper basis upon which to deny a petition for postconviction relief without holding an evidentiary hearing is res judicata. Lentz, 70 Ohio St.3d at 530.
Under the doctrine of res judicata, a final judgment of conviction bars a convicted defendant who was represented by counsel from raising and litigating in any proceeding, except an appeal from that judgment, any defense or any claimed lack of due process that was raised or could have been raised by the defendant at the trial, which resulted in that judgment of conviction, or on an appeal from that judgment.State v. Szefcyk (1996), 77 Ohio St.3d 93, syllabus, approving and following State v. Perry (1967), 10 Ohio St.2d 175, paragraph nine of the syllabus. It is well-settled that, "pursuant to res judicata, a defendant cannot raise an issue in a [petition] for postconviction relief if he or she could have raised the issue on direct appeal." State v. Reynolds (1997), 79 Ohio St.3d 158, 161. Accordingly, "[t]o survive preclusion by res judicata, a petitioner must produce new evidence that would render the judgment void or voidable and must also show that he could not have appealed the claim based upon information contained in the original record." State v. Nemchik (Mar. 8, 2000), Lorain App. No. 98CA007279, unreported, at 3; see, also, State v. Ferko (Oct. 3, 2001), Summit App. No. 20608, unreported, at 5.
Similarly, regarding claims of ineffective assistance of trial counsel in postconviction proceedings, the Ohio Supreme Court has stated that where a defendant, represented by different counsel on direct appeal, "fails to raise [in the direct appeal] the issue of competent trial counsel and said issue could fairly have been determined without resort to evidence dehors the record, res judicata is a proper basis for dismissing defendant's petition for postconviction relief." State v. Cole (198...
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