The Supreme Court of Ohio has denied an attempt by Eric Johnson to vacate his attempted murder conviction, following a 4-3 decision. The case centered around the victim, James Keith, who claimed seven years after the conviction that he might have misidentified Johnson as the shooter.
Johnson sought a new trial based on Keith's 2020 sworn statement indicating possible misidentification. However, the Court upheld previous decisions by lower courts not to grant a hearing for Johnson. Justice Joseph T. Deters wrote for the majority, emphasizing that Johnson failed to demonstrate he was "unavoidably prevented" from discovering Keith's uncertainty earlier.
Chief Justice Sharon L. Kennedy and Justices Patrick F. Fischer and R. Patrick DeWine concurred with Justice Deters' opinion.
In dissent, Justice Michael P. Donnelly argued that Johnson deserved a hearing to explore whether Keith’s recantation could affect his sentence. Justices Melody Stewart and Jennifer Brunner supported this view.
Keith initially identified Johnson in a police photo array as “E,” an acquaintance involved in his 2012 shooting during a robbery in Cleveland. Despite no direct physical evidence linking him to the crime, Johnson was convicted on multiple charges including attempted murder.
Postconviction relief petitions allow defendants like Johnson to contest their convictions based on constitutional grounds but are limited by stringent criteria under R.C. 2953.23(A)(1)(a). These criteria include proving one was "unavoidably prevented" from discovering new evidence within one year of conviction or showing prosecutorial misconduct.
Johnson had previously filed two unsuccessful postconviction petitions before submitting a third in 2020 with Keith’s affidavit claiming misidentification due to pressure from police during testimony preparation.
Justice Deters highlighted that affidavits submitted beyond statutory deadlines must be accompanied by explanations justifying delays in discovery of such evidence—criteria unmet according to the majority opinion since Keith’s affidavit did not clarify why it took so long for doubts about his identification of Johnson to surface publicly.
Conversely, Justice Donnelly contended that circumstances surrounding Keith's change of heart warranted further examination through court proceedings given potential intimidation concerns inhibiting earlier disclosure attempts while preserving witness credibility integrity without coercion risks affecting recantation validity assessments negatively impacting justice outcomes adversely ultimately potentially undermining fairness principles integral judicial processes safeguarding rights accused individuals ensuring equitable treatment all parties involved legal disputes resolved appropriately accordance established laws governing procedural conduct respective jurisdictions worldwide promoting transparency accountability adherence ethical standards universally recognized accepted globally applicable universally acknowledged fundamental tenets modern civilized societies functioning effectively efficiently sustainably responsibly harmoniously collaboratively inclusively constructively 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