State v. Vale

• Docket Number: 22AP-537
• Decision Date: 21 November 2023
• Parties: State of Ohio, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Christopher Raymond James Vale, Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: Ohio Court of Appeals

1

2023-Ohio-4287

State of Ohio, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Christopher Raymond James Vale, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 22AP-537

Court of Appeals of Ohio, Tenth District

November 21, 2023

APPEAL from the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas (C.P.C. No 20CR-580)

On brief: G. Gary Tyack, Prosecuting Attorney, and Paula M Sawyers, for appellee. Argued: Paula M. Sawyers.

On brief: Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP, Lizett M Schreiber, and David H. Thomas, for appellant. Argued: Lizett M. Schreiber.

DECISION

DORRIAN, J.

{¶ 1} Defendant-appellant, Christopher Raymond James Vale, appeals a judgment entered by the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas denying his motion to withdraw his guilty plea. For the following reasons, we affirm.

{¶ 2} On January 31, 2020, appellant was indicted on 1 count of trafficking in cocaine (equal to or exceeding 100 grams) in violation of R.C. 2925.03, a first-degree felony (Count 3), 1 count of possession of cocaine (equal to or exceeding 100 grams) in violation of R.C. 2925.11, a first-degree felony (Count 4), and 1 count of aggravated possession of drugs (methamphetamine equal to or exceeding 5 times the bulk amount but less than 50 times the bulk amount) in violation of R.C. 2925.11, a second-degree felony (Count 5). Counts 3 and 4 were accompanied by 1-year firearm specifications under R.C. 2941.141(A), major drug offender specifications under R.C. 2941.1410(A), and specifications for forfeiture of money in a drug case under R.C. 2941.1417(A). Count 5 included a 1-year firearm specification pursuant to R.C. 2941.141(A). According to the indictment, all charges arose from an incident on May 2, 2019.^[1]

{¶ 3} On May 25, 2021, appellant entered a counseled guilty plea to the stipulated lesser-included offense of Count 3, trafficking in cocaine (between 27 and 100 grams) in violation of R.C. 2925.03, a first-degree felony, without the major drug offender specification but including the 1-year firearm and forfeiture specifications. Appellant also pled guilty to the stipulated lesser-included offense of Count 5, aggravated possession of drugs in violation of R.C. 2925.11, as a third-degree felony without the firearm specification. Upon recommendation of the prosecutor, through plaintiff-appellee State of Ohio, the trial court entered a nolle prosequi as to Count 4 and the remaining specifications. The parties jointly recommended a prison sentence of 5 years on the stipulated lesser-included offense of Count 3 plus a 1-year consecutive prison term on the firearm specification, and a 24-month prison term on the stipulated lesser-included offense of Count 5 to be served consecutively to the sentence imposed on Count 3, for a total aggregate indefinite prison term of 8 to 10.5 years. In addition, the parties jointly recommended the forfeiture of $1,999, and confiscation and destruction of any recovered firearms not returned to their lawful owners.

{¶ 4} At appellant's plea hearing, the prosecutor moved to amend the indictment to reflect the date of the incident as August 27, 2019 rather than May 2, 2019. Without objection from appellant, the trial court granted the motion to amend.^[2]

{¶ 5} Thereafter, the prosecutor set forth the facts underlying the charges as follows:

[PROSECUTOR]: * * * [T]his was an investigation that was conducted by the DEA Drug Task Force and Columbus Division of Police. It began in 2018. The police were provided information that the [appellant] was supplying a number of trap houses around central Ohio. Two of those were here in Columbus on * * * Republic Avenue and on Renwood Avenue in Columbus.

There were search warrants that were eventually executed at the Republic Avenue location. Nothing came of that. However, at that point, the police lost contact with [appellant]. It appeared [appellant] had changed up his operations. However, in 2019, he resurfaced again, and a confidential informant advised the police that he was selling narcotics again, apparently from the * * * Renwood Place [location].

[Appellant] actually resided up in Raymond, Ohio, on State Route 31, but was traveling to Columbus and other locations to supply the trap houses at this time.

The detectives were able to conduct a couple of undercover controlled buys at the Renwood location in August 2019. On August 27th, 2019, the search warrants were executed at Renwood Place as well as [appellant's] residence in Raymond, Ohio. When the detectives were conducting surveillance on August 27th, 2019, at Renwood prior to the search warrant, they observed [appellant] and two other individuals at that location. They witnessed [appellant] proceed to a car that was parked outside with one of those individuals who ended up being Mr. Conley, the co-defendant. Mr. Conley opened up the car door, got a bag out, provided that bag to [appellant]. [Appellant] opened the bag, looked in it, and both of them walked into the house and out of sight.

The police then immediately made entry in to that residence. As they were doing so, there were spotters at the rear who indicated there were two males running from the Renwood Place location. Those two males included [appellant]. Mr. Conley was apprehended.

During a search of the rear of the location, the police recovered the bag that they observed [appellant] carrying in to the house. It had a substantial amount of what appeared to be cocaine. And actually then a handgun and the $1,900 in cash was found under a lawn chair in the driveway. During a search of the residence, the police located four additional firearms.

Mr. Conley was interviewed, and he provided that he had brought the cocaine to [appellant] for sale at that location, and that he had additional cocaine at his residence. So there was a search warrant conducted at that residence that applies to Mr. Conley.

When the search warrant was executed at State Route 31 in Raymond, Ohio, detectives located approximately 26 grams of crystal meth[amphetamine] and an additional 67 firearms.

* * *

The drugs were submitted to the Columbus police crime lab for analysis, and the cocaine recovered at the Renwood Avenue address totaled 494 grams, and the methamphetamine recovered at State Route 31 totaled 24.872. The firearms were tested and determined to be operable.

And the entire drug trafficking operation took place primarily in Franklin County, Ohio, with the connection to the State Route 31 being where [appellant] resided and where he would travel from to resupply his locations here in Franklin County.

THE COURT: But the conduct in Count 5 was Raymond, Ohio?

[PROSECUTOR]: It was Raymond, Ohio, yes, Your Honor.

(May 25, 2021 Tr. at 7-10.)^[3]

{¶ 6} Appellant averred he understood and accepted the statement of facts provided by the prosecutor.

{¶ 7} Following a thorough Crim.R. 11 plea colloquy, appellant entered a plea of guilty to the charges as delineated in the written entry of guilty plea. After concluding appellant's plea was entered knowingly, voluntarily, and intelligently, the trial court accepted the plea, found appellant guilty, and set sentencing for July 29, 2021.^[4]

{¶ 8} At the July 29, 2021 sentencing hearing, the trial court imposed the jointly recommended aggregate indefinite sentence of 8 to 10.5 years, notified appellant of 5 years mandatory post-release control, imposed a mandatory fine of $15,000 ($10,ooo on Count 3 plus $5,000 on Count 5), ordered forfeiture of $1,999 and confiscation and destruction of firearms not otherwise returned to their lawful owners. The trial court memorialized appellant's conviction and sentence in a judgment entry issued July 30, 2021. Appellant did not timely appeal from his conviction and sentence.

{¶ 9} Nearly one year after judgment and conviction, on July 13, 2022, appellant, represented by new counsel, filed a motion to withdraw his guilty plea. Therein, appellant argued his guilty plea should be set aside to correct a manifest injustice, as "favorable evidence that is material to either guilt or punishment" had "come to light" after he was sentenced. (Mot. to Withdraw Guilty Plea at 1.) The post-sentence evidence involved the September 28, 2021 arrest of Columbus Division of Police ("CPD") Detectives Marco Merino and John Kotchkoski on federal charges of drug trafficking and bribery. The charges against the detectives resulted from an FBI investigation into their alleged criminal activity occurring between March and September 2021. The detectives pled guilty to the charges in early 2022. Appellant averred that Merino and Kotchkoski were "material witnesses" and "significantly involved in the investigation that led to [appellant's] convictions." (Mot. to Withdraw Guilty Plea at 4, 5.) According to appellant, the prosecution never disclosed that the detectives were under investigation by the FBI throughout the pendency of his case; rather, he discovered this information solely through media reports.

{¶ 10} Appellant asserted this evidence should have been disclosed by the prosecution pursuant to Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1962), and failure to do so violated his due process rights under both the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article I, Section 16 of the Ohio Constitution. Appellant argued all three components of a Brady violation had occurred in this case:

[1] [T]he fact that two of the State's lead witnesses were under investigation and eventually convicted for crimes involving manipulation of criminal investigations is favorable to [appellant] as impeaching, and potentially exculpatory[,]

[2] [T]his evidence was suppressed by the State. While this information was known to the FBI, and not necessarily the Franklin County Prosecutor's Office, "the individual prosecutor has a duty to learn of any favorable evidence known to the others

...