State v. Ward
| Decision Date | 03 February 2023 |
| Docket Number | C. A. 29493 |
| Citation | 2023 Ohio 328 |
| Parties | STATE OF OHIO Appellee v. ANTONION K. WARD Appellant |
| Court | Ohio Court of Appeals |
(Criminal Appeal from Common Pleas Court No. 2021 CR 01106)
MATHIAS H. HECK, JR., by RICKY L. MURRAY, Attorney for Appellee
CHARLES W. SLICER, III, Attorney for Appellant
{¶ 1} Appellant, Antonion K. Ward, appeals from his convictions in the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas after a jury found him guilty of three counts of aggravated vehicular homicide. In support of his appeal, Ward claims that the trial court erred by failing to suppress un-Mirandized statements that he made to police officers during two separate interviews. Ward also claims that his convictions were against the manifest weight of the evidence and that his trial counsel provided ineffective assistance during his trial. Ward further claims that he was denied a fair trial due to the State's engaging in prosecutorial misconduct during closing argument. For the reasons outlined below, we find that all of Ward's claims lack merit, and we will affirm the judgment of the trial court.
{¶ 2} On May 11, 2021, a Montgomery County grand jury returned an indictment charging Ward with three counts of aggravated vehicular homicide in violation of R.C 2903.06(A)(2)(a), felonies of the second degree. The charges arose from a two-vehicle collision that occurred on July 15, 2020, at the intersection of Olive and Little Richmond Roads in the city of Trotwood. The indictment alleged that Ward had been operating one of the vehicles involved in the collision and that, in doing so, he recklessly caused the deaths of his passengers, Michael Stephens and Elgin Wilson IV, and of the driver of the other vehicle in the collision, Leah Smith. Ward pled not guilty to the indicted charges and thereafter filed a motion to suppress. In the motion, Ward sought to suppress statements that he had made to investigating officers during two separate interviews on grounds that the officers did not advise him of his Miranda rights before questioning him.
{¶ 3} On March 7, 2022, the trial court held a hearing on Ward's motion to suppress. At the hearing, the State presented testimony from the officers who had questioned Ward. The first officer, Trooper Joshua Jones of the State Highway Patrol, testified that he had interviewed Ward on the night of the accident while Ward was at the hospital receiving medical treatment for his injuries. The second officer, Officer Sherri Jackson of the Trotwood Police Department, testified that she and another officer, Trooper Ambers, had interviewed Ward at his residence two weeks after the accident. Both Tpr. Jones and Ofc. Jackson testified that, at the time of their respective interviews, Ward had not been a criminal suspect, had not been placed under arrest, and had not been advised of his Miranda rights before questioning. The officers' testimony also established that the officers had in no way restrained Ward's freedom of movement or his ability to terminate the interviews.
{¶ 4} After considering the officers' testimony and the exhibits, which included a written statement of the questions and answers given during Tpr. Jones' interview and an audio recording of Ofc. Jackson's interview, the trial court determined that neither interview had qualified as a custodial interrogation that required Miranda warnings. Accordingly, the trial court overruled Ward's motion to suppress the statements that he had made to each of the officers.
{¶ 5} Following the trial court's ruling on Ward's motion to suppress, the matter proceeded to a three-day jury trial in May 2022. During trial, the State presented testimony from multiple witnesses who had observed the traffic accident. The State also presented testimony from the fire and law enforcement officers who had responded to the scene of the accident and investigated the matter. In addition, the State presented testimony from the coroner who had performed autopsies on the three victims and from an expert traffic accident reconstructionist. Ward also testified in his defense.
{¶ 6} The trial testimony established that on the evening of July 15, 2020, Ward, who was then 19 years old, drove his mother's Chevy Cruz to pick up his 18-year-old stepbrother, Michael Stephens, and his 18-year-old friend, Elgin Wilson, from a pool party. Ward's plan was to drive Stephens and Wilson to an after-party located at an Airbnb rental house. While traveling to the after-party, Ward stopped his vehicle at a traffic light on Olive Road near the Trotwood police station. An SUV driven by Ward's 17-year-old friend, E'Mariha Combs, was stopped beside Ward in the adjacent lane of traffic. Combs had also been at the pool party and was driving a group of her friends and her 14-year-old brother, Emerson, to the same after-party that Ward and his friends were traveling to attend. Ward and Combs saw each other as they were sitting side-by-side at the traffic light, and they both took off fast on Olive Road once the light turned green.
{¶ 7} Combs testified that, when she took off from the traffic light, she drove 80 miles per hour down Olive Road. Combs testified that Ward kept up with her speed and eventually positioned his vehicle behind her once Olive Road went from two lanes to one. During that time, Combs testified that she and Ward passed two or three vehicles on Olive Road by weaving in and out of the oncoming traffic lane. Combs claimed that, when she approached an intersection with Little Richmond Road, she drove into a turn lane and stopped her vehicle at a traffic light that was positioned at the intersection. Combs testified that Ward then passed her and went straight through the intersection while the traffic light was red. Combs testified that Ward traveled through the intersection at approximately 75 miles per hour without braking. Thereafter, Combs saw Ward's vehicle collide with a vehicle traveling on Little Richmond Road; Ward's vehicle flew into the air, touched a power line, caught fire, and landed in a nearby wooded area, while the other vehicle flipped over and landed in a ditch off the road.
{¶ 8} Combs' brother, Emerson, who had been in the SUV with Combs, testified to seeing Ward, Stephens, and Wilson stopped next to them at a traffic light by the Trotwood police station. After that, Emerson testified that Combs started to drive fast down Olive Road, which he noted had a speed limit of 35 miles per hour. Emerson testified that he told Combs to slow down and that Combs thereafter drove into a turn lane and stopped their vehicle at a red light at the intersection of Little Richmond Road. Emerson testified that he saw Ward's vehicle pass them on the driver's side and then collide with another vehicle traveling on Little Richmond Road. Emerson called 9-1 -1 to report the accident. An audio-recording of Emerson's 9-1-1 call was played for the jury and admitted into evidence as State's Exhibit 66. During the call, Emerson can be heard telling the operator that: "The car that is on fire ran a red light."
{¶ 9} Another motorist, Karrie Canady, testified that on the day of the accident, she was driving 40 miles per hour on Olive Road when an SUV and another vehicle following the SUV came up quickly behind her and passed her by driving into the oncoming traffic lane. Canady testified that both vehicles were traveling at the same rate of speed, which she estimated was approximately 65 to 70 miles per hour. Canady testified that the SUV took a wide right turn onto Little Richmond Road while the other vehicle behind it went straight through the intersection after the traffic light had turned red. The next thing Canady remembered was seeing smoke and hearing a collision. Canady called 9-1-1 and reported the accident; an audio recording of Canady's 9-1-1 call was played for the jury and admitted into evidence as State's Exhibit 67. During the call, Canady can be heard saying: During the call, Canady also advised the 9-1 -1 operator that there was a baby in one of the vehicles.
{¶ 10} Kimberly Moore, a resident who lived near the intersection of Olive and Little Richmond Roads, testified that on the day of the accident, she was walking her dog when she heard a loud explosion and saw a vehicle flying into pieces. Moore testified that the vehicle was so high in the air that she could see it over the top her next-door neighbor's roof. Moore testified that she did not recall hearing any brakes or screeching of tires. Moore testified that she immediately called 9-1-1 while her boyfriend ran toward the front of their driveway. Moore testified that when her boyfriend came back, he told her that there was a baby in one of the vehicles. Moore also testified to seeing a young woman jump out of an SUV and pace up and down the street while frantically screaming: "It's my fault; I should have told him no." Trial Tr. Vol. I, p. 44.
{¶ 11} Lieutenant Michael Snyder of the Trotwood Fire Department was the first officer to arrive at the scene of the accident. Lt. Snyder testified that when he arrived, he saw a vehicle off to the left of the road on its side against a pole and another vehicle in the woods fully engulfed in flames. Lt. Snyder testified that he and another officer made their way into the woods and extinguished the flames coming from the vehicle that was on fire. After doing so, Lt. Snyder observed two victims inside the vehicle who were charred beyond recognition. Snyder testified that a third person Ward, was found approximately...
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