Opinion ID: 2982191
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: State court appeals

Text: Following Ross’s conviction, he appealed to the Ohio Court of Appeals, raising ten assignments of error. The claims relevant to the present discussion include the following: (1) the “culmination of prejudicial error and prosecutorial misconduct,” (2) the trial court’s failure to grant a new trial as a result of the prosecutor’s failure to turn over exculpatory evidence, and (3) the trial court’s failure to produce the grand jury testimony. The court of appeals affirmed Ross’s conviction. It held that (1) the “prosecutors’ actions, either individually or cumulatively, did not deprive Ross of a fair trial” because they did not prejudice Ross, (2) the trial court did not abuse its discretion in declining to grant a new trial, and Ross’s attorney was given sufficient opportunity to review and question witnesses regarding exculpatory evidence turned over during the course of trial rather than beforehand, and (3) the trial court did not abuse its discretion in finding that Ross had “no particularized need” for the grand jury testimony. In response, Ross filed a motion for reconsideration and/or en banc review in the court of appeals. This motion focused entirely on the court’s holding regarding evidentiary matters, and specifically, whether Ross should have been given access to grand jury testimony to impeach prosecution witnesses. The court of appeals denied the motion. Next, Ross appealed to the Ohio Supreme Court. His accompanying memorandum of jurisdiction alleged that the trial court was required to produce the grand jury testimony for his -6- No. 11-3454 Ross v. Pineda review due to inconsistencies between the bill of particulars and the testimony of witnesses at trial. Additionally, he argued that he was denied a fair trial because of the prosecutors’ “emotional plea to the jury, accus[ation of] defense counsel of wrongdoing, and comments on the credibility of witnesses.” The Ohio Supreme Court denied Ross’s discretionary leave to appeal.