Justia Ohio Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the court of appeals dismissing a petition for writs of mandamus and/or prohibition to compel Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas Judge Cassandra Collier-Williams to carry out a mandate previously issued by the court of appeals, holding that the court of appeals correctly dismissed the petition.After the trial court granted summary judgment for Defendants the court of appeals reversed in part and remanded the case for further proceedings. After remand, the trial court concluded that Plaintiff was not allowed to pursue damages against Defendants and denied him a jury trial. Plaintiff then filed his petition for writs of mandamus and/or prohibition seeking to compel Judge Collier-Williams to give full effect to the appellate court's mandate and to grant him a jury trial. The court of appeals dismissed the petition. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Plaintiff did not allege facts showing that the judge directly disobeyed the court of appeals' mandate or that he was entitled to an extraordinary writ to compel Judge Collier-Williams to grant him a jury trial. View "State ex rel. Gallagher v. Collier-Williams" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court denied a writ of mandamus sought by North Canton City Council ordering Stark County Board of Elections to place two proposed levies on the May 2, 2023 primary-election ballot, holding that the Board properly determined that the proposed levies were ineligible for consideration at the 2023 primary election.Because the Board did not approve the proposed (street and storm-water) levies as amended for placement on the May 2 primary election ballot the Council filed this expedited election action seeking a writ of mandamus compelling the Board to place the resolutions on the May 2 ballot. The Supreme Court denied the writ, holding (1) the proposed levies may not be presented to North Canton voters as "renewal" levies before the November 2024 election; and (2) the Board did not abuse its discretion or act contrary to law in rejecting the placement of the proposed levies on the ballot. View "State ex rel. North Canton City Council v. Stark County Bd. of Elections" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the court of appeals denying Michael Bell's petition seeking a writ of habeas against the warden of the Mansfield Correctional Institution (MCI) and denied Bell's motion to reverse and vacate the judgment against him, holding that Bell was not entitled to relief.Bell, an inmate at MCI, filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus against MCI's warden, presenting several arguments to support his claim for relief. The court of appeals granted the warden's motion to dismiss for failure to state a valid claim for relief in habeas corpus. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Bell could not establish that he was entitled to habeas relief under any of the theories he presented. View "Bell v. McConahay" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the court of appeals dismissing Plaintiff's complaint seeking writs of prohibition and mandamus to vacate the result of a 2016 hearing held by the Ohio Parole Board that denied parole to Plaintiff, holding that Plaintiff failed to show that he was entitled to relief in prohibition or mandamus.While Plaintiff became eligible for parole in April 2018, his parole eligibility date was mistakenly calculated, and Appellant given a parole hearing in 2016. After the hearing, the parole board denied parole. In 2020, Plaintiff filed his complaint for writs of prohibition and mandamus seeking to vacate the parole board's 2016 decision and compel a new hearing. The court of appeals dismissed the complaint. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Plaintiff failed to support his claims on appeal. View "State ex rel. Holman v. Ohio Adult Parole Authority" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the court of appeals dismissing Appellant's petition for a writ of habeas corpus, holding that Appellant was not entitled to relief on his propositions of law.Appellant was convicted of rape of a minor and other crimes. Appellant later brought this petition for a writ of habeas corpus alleging that after serving his mandatory minimum sentence he satisfied the conditions for parole and had been granted release and that he had a right to immediate release. The court of appeals denied the petition. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the error of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction misinforming Appellant about his parole status did not create a constitutional right to parole. View "State ex rel. Lindsay v. Dep't of Rehabilitation & Correction" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court denied this petition filed by LaRon Gregory seeking a writ of mandamus to compel the City of Toledo to provide public records and awarded statutory damages, holding that Gregory was not entitled to a writ of mandamus.Gregory send a public records request to the Toledo police department requesting certain records and asking certain questions. At the time Gregory filed his mandamus complaint the City had not responded to his records request, but by the time he filed his merit brief, the City had responded, largely satisfying his records request. The Supreme Court denied Gregory's demand for a writ of mandamus in part as moot and in part on the merits and held that Gregory was entitled to an award of $400 in statutory damages. View "State ex rel. Gregory v. Toledo" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the court of appeals dismissing Appellant's complaint for writs of prohibition and mandamus seeking vacated of his criminal convictions, holding that Appellant had an adequate remedy in the ordinary course of the law.In 2009, Appellant was convicted of aggravated robbery and complicity to commit murder and sentenced to an aggregate term of twenty-eight years to life in prison. In 2022, Appellant filed his complaint for writs of prohibition and mandamus, arguing that the trial court lacked jurisdiction to "misapply" Ohio's aggravated robbery statute, Ohio Rev. Code 2911.01, requiring vacatur of his conviction. The court of appeals dismissed the complaint. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Appellant had an adequate remedy in the ordinary course of the law. View "State ex rel. Boler v. McCarthy" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the court of appeals dismissing Appellant's petition for a writ of habeas corpus, holding that Appellant's Ohio Rev. Code 2969.25(A) affidavit was deficient, making his habeas corpus petition subject to dismissal.Appellant, an inmate at Trumbull Correctional Institution, filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus against the warden, arguing that his underlying burglary conviction was void and that he was entitled to immediate release. The court of appeals granted the warden's motion to dismiss. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the court of appeals properly found that Appellant's affidavit did not strictly comply with the statute and in thus dismissing the petition. View "Westerfield v. Bracy" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the court of appeals dismissing Appellant's complaint for a writ of habeas corpus against warden of the Mansfield Correctional Institution, holding that the petition was properly dismissed.Since he was convicted in 1979 for numerous felony offenses Appellant had been released on parole and convicted of new crimes at least four times. In 2022, Appellant filed his petition for a writ of habeas corpus, arguing that his 1979 convictions were void. The court of appeals sua sponte dismissed the complaint on procedural grounds. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the court of appeals correctly dismissed the petition because Appellant did not comply with the mandatory filing requirements of Ohio Rev. Code 2725.04 and Ohio Rev. Code 2969.25. View "Robinson v. McConahay" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the court of appeals dismissing this original action seeking to challenge the validity of a common pleas court's determination that Huber Heights Veterans Club, Inc. (HHVC) was a vexatious litigator, holding that HHVC's failure to file an application for leave deprived the court of appeals of jurisdiction.HHVC filed a complaint against a court of common pleas judge alleging that the judge had not yet ruled on a motion for partial summary judgment. The common pleas court declared HHVC to be a vexatious litigator and denied relief. HHVC then sought a writ of mandamus compelling the judge to withdraw his decision. The court of appeals dismissed the complaint after construing HHVC's response to a show-cause order as a belated application for leave to proceed under Ohio Rev. Code 2323.52(D)(3). The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the court of appeals did not err in determining that there were no reasonable grounds to grant leave. View "State ex rel. Huber Heights Veterans Club, Inc. v. Skelton" on Justia Law