State v. Brown , 2022 Ohio 1676 ( 2022 )

[Cite as State v. Brown, 2022-Ohio-1676.]
COURT OF APPEALS OF OHIO
EIGHTH APPELLATE DISTRICT
COUNTY OF CUYAHOGA
STATE OF OHIO, :
Plaintiff-Appellee, :
No. 110905
v. :
NORRIS L. BROWN, :
Defendant-Appellant. :
JOURNAL ENTRY AND OPINION
JUDGMENT: AFFIRMED
RELEASED AND JOURNALIZED: May 19, 2022
Criminal Appeal from the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas
Case No. CR-20-652482-A
Appearances:
Michael C. O’Malley, Cuyahoga County Prosecuting
Attorney, and Mahmoud S. Awadallah and Warren W.
Griffin, Assistant Prosecuting Attorneys, for appellee.
Tim Young, Ohio State Public Defender, and Lauren
Hammersmith, Assistant State Public Defender, for
appellant.
KATHLEEN ANN KEOUGH, P.J.:
Defendant-appellant, Norris Brown, appeals his sentence,
contending that the law under which he was sentenced – the Reagan Tokes Law – is
unconstitutional. Finding no merit to the appeal, we affirm.
Brown pleaded guilty to one count of involuntary manslaughter with
a three-year gun specification and one count of felonious assault. Over defense
counsel’s objection, the trial court applied the Reagan Tokes Law and sentenced
Brown to an aggregate sentence of 18 to 23 and one-half years in prison.
In his single assignment of error, Brown contends that this court
should vacate his sentence because the Reagan Tokes Law is unconstitutional in that
it violates constitutional guarantees of due process and separation of powers.
Brown’s assignment of error is overruled pursuant to this court’s en
banc decision in State v. Delvallie, 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 109315, 2022-Ohio-470,
which overruled the challenges presented in this appeal to the Reagan Tokes Law.
Judgment affirmed.
It is ordered that appellee recover from appellant costs herein taxed.
The court finds there were reasonable grounds for this appeal.
It is ordered that a special mandate issue out of this court directing the
common pleas court to carry this judgment into execution. The defendant’s
conviction having been affirmed, any bail pending is terminated. Case remanded to
the trial court for execution of sentence.
A certified copy of this entry shall constitute the mandate pursuant to Rule 27
of the Rules of Appellate Procedure.
KATHLEEN ANN KEOUGH, PRESIDING JUDGE
EILEEN A. GALLAGHER, J., and
LISA B. FORBES, J., CONCUR
N.B. Judge Lisa B. Forbes is constrained to apply Delvallie. For a full explanation,
see State v. Delvallie, 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 109315, 2022-Ohio-470 (Forbes, J.,
dissenting).