[Cite as State v. Srock, 2013-Ohio-4452.]

COURT OF APPEALS 

STARK COUNTY, OHIO 

FIFTH APPELLATE DISTRICT 

STATE OF OHIO : JUDGES: 

 : 

 : Hon. W. Scott Gwin, P.J. 

 Plaintiff - Appellee : Hon. John W. Wise, J. 

 : Hon. Craig R. Baldwin, J. 

 : 

-vs- : 

 : 

GREGORY T. SROCK : Case No. 2013CA00064 

 : 

 : 

 Defendant - Appellant : O P I N I O N

CHARACTER OF PROCEEDING: Appeal from the Stark County Court 

 of Common Pleas, Case No. 

 2012CR1136A 

JUDGMENT: Affirmed 

DATE OF JUDGMENT: October 7, 2013 

APPEARANCES: 

For Plaintiff-Appellee For Defendant-Appellant 

JOHN D. FERRERO BERNARD L. HUNT 

Prosecuting Attorney 2395 McGinty Road NW 

 North Canton, OH 44720 

BY: RENEE M. WATSON 

Assistant Prosecuting Attorney 

Appellate Section 

110 Central Plaza South, Suite 510 

Canton, OH 44702 
Stark County, Case No. 2013CA00064 2 

 

Baldwin, J.

{¶1} Appellant Gregory T. Srock appeals a judgment of the Stark County 

Common Pleas Court convicting him of one count of safecracking (R.C. 2911.31(A) and 

one count of breaking and entering (R.C. 2911.13(A)). Appellee is the State of Ohio. 

STATEMENT OF FACTS AND CASE

{¶2} On June 13 and 14, 2012, appellant was with his friends Zach and 

Stephanie Dare in the Canton apartment of a friend of the Dares. While shooting 

heroin, appellant told the Dares that he knew that the owner of the Canal Boat Lounge 

in Canal Fulton planned to rob his own business for the insurance money, and he 

wanted to beat him to it. 

{¶3} The group got into a Chevy Cruise which Stephanie Dare had rented from 

Enterprise earlier in the week and drove to Canal Fulton. The Dares dropped appellant 

off at the Canal Boat Lounge and drove around until they saw appellant walking down 

the street. They picked appellant up, and he indicated that he was able to break into 

the bar. They drove back to the bar where appellant and Zach removed the safe, which 

weighed between 300 and 400 pounds, from the basement of the bar. The men took 

the cushions out of the small car to make the safe fit, and ultimately caused $3,000.00 

of damage to the car. 

{¶4} From the bar, the group drove back to the friend’s apartment in Canton. 

Stephanie retreated to a bedroom while the men wrestled the large safe into the 

apartment. Appellant used a grinder to remove the hinges from the safe. They 

discovered another strong box inside, containing around $4,000.00. They used some of 
Stark County, Case No. 2013CA00064 3 

the money to buy a Suburban with which to dispose of the safe, and spent the rest on 

drugs and hotels. They disposed of the safe behind a storage facility in Navarre. 

{¶5} Hal Hardie, the owner of the bar, met a friend early in the morning of June 

14, 2012, for a bicycle ride. Hardie noted signs of a break-in, and discovered that his 

safe was missing. Hardie called the Canal Fulton Police. 

{¶6} Officer Charles Kassinger arrived at the bar, and noted that a sliding glass 

door had been pried open. A dolly that had been in the basement of the bar was found 

outside. Officer Barabach spoke to the Dares, who provided details of the crime and 

disclosed appellant’s involvement. Zach Dare drew a map which led officers to the 

disposal location of the safe. 

{¶7} When Barabach spoke to appellant, appellant denied taking the safe but 

stated, “Well, I’m not saying I wasn’t there.” Appellant also admitted to having a history 

with the Canal Boat Lounge because his girlfriend worked there. Hardie confirmed that 

appellant dated one of the barmaids and spent a lot of time at the bar, and appellant 

had attended the employees’ Christmas party. 

{¶8} Appellant was charged with one count of safecracking and one count of 

breaking and entering. The case proceeded to jury trial. After deliberating for twentysix minutes, appellant was convicted as charged. He was sentenced to six months in 

the Stark County jail on each count, to be served consecutively, and was ordered to 

begin a three-year period of community control upon completion of his jail time. He 

assigns one error on appeal: 

{¶9} “THE APPELLANT’S CONVICTIONS FOR ONE COUNT OF 

SAFECRACKING, A VIOLATION OF R.C. 2911.31(A) AND ONE COUNT OF 
Stark County, Case No. 2013CA00064 4 

BREAKING AND ENTERING, A VIOLATION OF R.C. 2911.13(A) WAS AGAINST THE 

MANIFEST WEIGHT OF THE EVIDENCE AND WAS NOT SUPPORTED BY 

SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE.” 

{¶10} In determining whether a verdict is against the manifest weight of the 

evidence, the appellate court acts as a thirteenth juror and “in reviewing the entire 

record, weighs the evidence and all reasonable inferences, considers the credibility of 

witnesses, and determines whether in resolving conflicts in evidence the jury ‘clearly 

lost its way and created such a manifest miscarriage of justice that the conviction must 

be reversed and a new trial ordered.’” State v. Thompkins, 78 Ohio St. 3d 380, 387, 

1997-Ohio-52, 678 N.E.2d 541, quoting State v. Martin, 20 Ohio App. 3d 172, 175, 485 

N.E.2d 717 (1983). 

{¶11} An appellate court's function when reviewing the sufficiency of the 

evidence is to determine whether, after viewing the evidence in a light most favorable to 

the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the 

crime proven beyond a reasonable doubt. State v. Jenks, 61 Ohio St. 3d 259, 574 

N.E.2d 492, paragraph two of the syllabus (1991). 

{¶12} Appellant was convicted of safecracking in violation of R.C. 2911.31(A), 

which provides, “No person, with purpose to commit an offense, shall knowingly enter, 

force an entrance into, or tamper with any vault, safe, or strongbox.” He was also 

convicted of breaking and entering in violation of R.C. 2911.13(A), which provides, “No 

person by force, stealth, or deception, shall trespass in an unoccupied structure, with 

purpose to commit therein any theft offense, as defined in section 2913.01 of the 

Revised Code, or any felony.” 
Stark County, Case No. 2013CA00064 5 

{¶13} Appellant does not argue that the State failed to prove the elements of the 

offenses. Rather, he argues that the evidence that linked appellant to the crimes 

committed at the Canal Boat Lounge came solely from the Dares, and the jury lost its 

way in believing the Dares’ testimony. He argues that Zach Dare has a lengthy criminal 

record and is not credible, and Stephanie Dare was not charged for her role in the 

crime. 

{¶14} The jury was informed of Zach Dare’s long criminal history, knew that he 

was incarcerated at the time of trial in the Summit County Jail, and was aware that he 

had pled guilty to his involvement in the instant case. Further, the jury was aware that 

Stephanie Dare was not charged for her role in the crimes. We cannot find that the jury 

lost its way in believing the testimony of the Dares that appellant was involved in the 

plan to take the safe from the Canal Boat Lounge, broke into the bar, helped Zach Dare 

remove the safe from the bar, and helped open the safe once they returned to the 

Canton apartment. Appellant conceded to police, “Well, I’m not going to say I wasn’t 

there.” Tr. 200. Further, the owner of the bar testified that appellant spent a lot of time 

in the bar and came to the employees’ Christmas party because he dated one of the 

employees. 

 
Stark County, Case No. 2013CA00064 6 

{¶15} The assignment of error is overruled. The judgment of the Stark County 

Common Pleas Court is affirmed. Costs assessed to appellant. 

By: Baldwin, J. 

Gwin, P.J. and 

Wise, J. concur. 

HON. CRAIG R. BALDWIN 

HON. W. SCOTT GWIN 

HON. JOHN W. WISE 

CRB/rad
[Cite as State v. Srock, 2013-Ohio-4452.]

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS FOR STARK COUNTY, OHIO 

FIFTH APPELLATE DISTRICT 

STATE OF OHIO : 

 : 

 Plaintiff - Appellee : 

 : 

-vs- : JUDGMENT ENTRY 

 : 

GREGORY T. SROCK : 

 : 

 Defendant - Appellant : CASE NO. 2013CA00064 

For the reasons stated in our accompanying Memorandum-Opinion, the 

judgment of the Court of Common Pleas of Stark County, Ohio is affirmed. Costs 

assessed to appellant. 

HON. CRAIG R. BALDWIN 

HON. W. SCOTT GWIN 

HON. JOHN W. WISE