Summary
stating that " trial court must, upon the defendant's request, state essential findings of fact in support of its denial of a motion to discharge for failure to comply with the speedy trial provisions"
Summary of this case from Vill. of Saint Paris v. GalluzzoOpinion
No. 85-285
Decided January 15, 1986.
Criminal law — Speedy trial — R.C. 2945.71 — Upon request, court must state findings of fact in support of its denial of motion to discharge.
O.Jur 3d Criminal Law §§ 841, 1109.
A trial court must, upon the defendant's request, state essential findings of fact in support of its denial of a motion to discharge for failure to comply with the speedy trial provisions of R.C. 2945.71.
CERTIFIED by the Court of Appeals for Williams County.
On December 2, 1983, defendant-appellant, Richard E. Knapp, was cited by the Bryan Police Department for driving left-of-center (a minor misdemeanor) and driving under the influence of alcohol (a misdemeanor of the first degree). Knapp was served at that time with a summons to appear before the Bryan Municipal Court on December 7, 1983. After several delays and continuances, trial was set for May 23, 1984. Before the trial commenced, Knapp filed a motion for discharge pursuant to the speedy trial provisions of R.C. 2945.71, stating that he had not been brought to trial within ninety days after the service of summons. Although one hundred seventy-three days had elapsed between the service of summons and the trial, the trial court denied Knapp's motion. When Knapp requested that the court state specific findings of fact in support of its ruling, the court replied: "I'm afraid your [ sic] not entitled to that finding and the record speaks clearly enough that all of these delays have been occasioned by the defendant. The Motion is overruled."
The court found Knapp guilty on both counts. On appeal he alleged that the trial court had erred both in dismissing the speedy trial motion and in refusing to state specific findings of fact. Knapp also alleged that the finding of guilty was against the manifest weight of the evidence. The appellate court rejected each allegation of error. The court, finding its judgment to be in conflict with the judgment of the Court of Appeals for Summit County in State v. Messenger (1976), 49 Ohio App.2d 341 [3 O.O.3d 416], certified the record of the case to this court for review on the issue of the trial court's duty to state findings of fact.
Joseph R. Kiacz, city attorney, for appellee.
Gallagher, Milliken Stelzer and J.T. Stelzer, for appellant.
Crim. R. 12(E) provides: "A motion made before trial other than a motion for change of venue, shall be timely determined before trial. Where factual issues are involved in determining a motion, the court shall state its essential findings on the record." (Emphasis added.) In ruling on Knapp's motion for discharge, the trial court on request by the defendant was required to determine factual issues concerning the reasons for delay of the trial. Crim. R. 12(E) mandates that the court state its essential findings on the record. Without such findings, neither the court of appeals nor this court can properly review the propriety of the trial court's ruling.
The city, as appellee, relies on Crim. R. 48(B), which requires the trial court to "* * * state on the record its findings of fact and reasons for the dismissal" only when the court dismisses a case over the state's objection. The fact that Crim. R. 48(B) requires findings in one particular situation does not, however, exempt the court from the obligation to make findings in other situations.
A trial court must, upon the defendant's request, state essential findings of fact in support of its denial of a motion to discharge for failure to comply with the speedy trial provisions of R.C. 2945.71. We reverse the judgment of the court of appeals and remand this cause to the trial court for the purpose of stating its essential findings of fact on the record.
Judgment reversed and cause remanded.
HOLMES, C. BROWN and DOUGLAS, JJ., concur.
CELEBREZZE, C.J., SWEENEY and LOCHER, JJ., dissent.
I agree with the majority's observation that Crim. R. 12(E) requires that "[w]here factual issues are involved in determining a motion, the court shall state its essential findings on the record." (Emphasis added.) However, I respectfully dissent from the majority's conclusion that the findings and record of the trial court in this case preclude effective review of the ruling on appellant's motion for discharge.
If the trial delay is so long that it is "* * * facially unreasonable and seriously open to question * * * the attendant facts and circumstances must be included in the record in sufficient detail so that the necessity and reasonableness of the continuance is demonstrable. * * * For this court to require less is to foreclose effective appellate review * * *." State v. Westworth (1978), 54 Ohio St.2d 171, 175 [8 O.O.3d 162].
In my opinion, the instant record amply establishes the sequence of events concerning the continuances granted by the trial court. It clearly reveals that a number of the delays were caused by appellant's own requests and his failure to appear in court. See State v. Bauer (1980), 61 Ohio St.2d 83 [15 O.O.3d 122]; State v. McBreen (1978), 54 Ohio St.2d 315, 318 [8 O.O.3d 302]. Additionally, the two continuances requested by the prosecutor were both approved by defense counsel. State v. McRae (1978), 55 Ohio St.2d 149 [9 O.O.3d 118]; State v. Davis (1975), 44 Ohio App.2d 95, 101 [73 O.O.2d 89].
In State v. Bauer, supra, we held "* * * that a defendant who fails to appear * * * and whose trial must therefore be rescheduled for a later date, waives his right to assert the provisions of R.C. 2945.71 through 2945.73 for that period of time which elapses from his initial arrest to the date he is subsequently rearrested." Id. at 85. See, also, R.C. 2945.72(D).
Similarly, in State v. McBreen, supra, we held in the syllabus that "[a] defendant's right to be brought to trial within the time limits expressed in R.C. 2945.71 may be waived by his counsel for reasons of trial preparation and the defendant is bound by the waiver even though the waiver is executed without his consent." See, also, id. at 318 and R.C. 2945.72(h).
In State v. Davis, supra, the Court of Appeals for Hamilton County correctly held "* * * that a motion to fix or to continue a trial date beyond the ninety day period may become the accused's own motion within the meaning of R.C. 2945.72(H), by adoption or agreement as well as by initiation." Id. at 101, cited with approval and followed in State v. McRae, supra, at 152-153, and footnote 4 at 153.
Although the judge's essential finding that "all" delays were appellant's is not totally correct, that ruling together with the record does provide the basis of the trial court's ruling and also contains sufficient facts concerning the chronology of events in this case so that a reviewing court can determine the "necessity and reasonableness" of the continuances.
I would follow the standard set forth in Wentworth, supra, and affirm the judgment of the appellate court. Further, although the stated basis of the trial judge's ruling is not entirely accurate, his decision to overrule appellant's motion for discharge is nevertheless correct because the continuances of the trial date were reasonable and proper in this case. See footnotes 2 and 3, supra.
SWEENEY and LOCHER, JJ., concur in the foregoing dissenting opinion.