State v. Struckman ( 2021 )


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  •       [Cite as State v. Struckman, 
    2021-Ohio-1043
    .]
    IN THE COURT OF APPEALS
    FIRST APPELLATE DISTRICT OF OHIO
    HAMILTON COUNTY, OHIO
    STATE OF OHIO,                                    :     APPEAL NOS. C-200069
    C-200210
    Plaintiff-Respondent-Appellee,              :      TRIAL NO. B-1502231
    vs.                                          :
    BUDDY EUGENE STRUCKMAN,                           :           O P I N I O N.
    Defendant-Petitioner-Appellant.             :
    Criminal Appeals From: Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas
    Judgments Appealed From Are:           Affirmed in C-200069;
    Appeal Dismissed in C-200210
    Date of Judgment Entry on Appeal: March 31, 2021
    Joseph T. Deters, Hamilton County Prosecuting Attorney, and Ronald Springman,
    Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, for Plaintiff-Respondent-Appellee,
    Buddy Eugene Struckman, pro se.
    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    ZAYAS, Presiding Judge.
    {¶1}    Defendant-petitioner-appellant Buddy Eugene Struckman appeals the
    Hamilton County Common Pleas Court’s judgments overruling his Crim.R. 33 motion for
    a new trial and denying his petition under R.C. 2953.21 for postconviction relief. We
    dismiss for lack of jurisdiction Struckman’s appeal from the overruling of his new-trial
    motion. And we affirm the common pleas court’s judgment denying postconviction relief.
    {¶2}    In May 2018, Struckman was convicted upon jury verdicts finding him
    guilty of two counts of unlawful possession of a dangerous ordnance. We affirmed
    those convictions in the direct appeal. State v. Struckman, 1st Dist. Hamilton No. C-
    180287, 
    2020-Ohio-1232
    , appeal not accepted, 
    159 Ohio St.3d 1446
    , 2020-Ohio-
    3712, 
    149 N.E.3d 523
    .
    {¶3}    Struckman also sought relief from his convictions by filing with the
    common pleas court, in August 2018, motions for a new trial and for leave to move for a
    new trial out of time and, in November 2019, a petition under R.C. 2953.21 et seq. for
    postconviction relief. Here, in the case numbered C-200210, he appeals the judgment
    overruling his motion for a new trial. And in the case numbered C-200069, he appeals the
    judgment denying his postconviction petition.
    App. No. C-200210—No Appeals Court Jurisdiction
    {¶4}    We address at the outset the state’s argument that Struckman’s appeal in
    C-200210, from the common pleas court’s judgment overruling his motion for a new trial,
    must be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. We agree.
    {¶5}    A timely filed notice of appeal confers upon a reviewing court the
    jurisdiction to entertain an appeal. See App.R. 3(A) and 4; State ex rel. Curran v.
    Brookes, 
    142 Ohio St. 107
    , 
    50 N.E.2d 995
     (1943), paragraph seven of the syllabus.
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    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    Generally, the notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days of entry of the final
    judgment sought to be appealed. App.R. 4(A)(1). If the notice of appeal is not timely
    filed, the appellant in a criminal case may move under App.R. 5 for leave to file a
    delayed appeal. In a civil case, “if the clerk has not completed service of the order
    [appealed] within the three-day period prescribed in Civ.R. 58(B),” the 30-day
    appeal period is tolled and does not “begin to run [until] the date when the clerk
    actually completes service.” App.R. 4(A)(3).
    {¶6}   The notices of appeal in C-200210 and C-200069 were not filed within the
    30 days prescribed by App.R. 4(A)(1). Struckman did not, in either appeal, seek leave
    under App.R. 5 to file a delayed appeal. And neither the judgment denying postconviction
    relief nor the judgment overruling the new-trial motion has been served on Struckman.
    {¶7}   Appeal from denial of postconviction petition was timely
    filed.     The proceedings upon a petition under R.C. 2953.21 et seq. for
    postconviction relief are civil in nature and governed by the Ohio Rules of Appellate
    Procedure as they apply to a civil action. State v. Nichols, 
    11 Ohio St.3d 40
    , 
    463 N.E.2d 375
     (1984), paragraph two of the syllabus. Thus, regardless of whether the
    petitioner actually knows of the judgment denying postconviction relief, the time for
    appealing that judgment is tolled under App.R. 4(A)(3) and begins to run only “upon
    service of notice of the judgment and notation of service on the docket by the clerk of
    courts.” State v. Young, 1st Dist. Hamilton No. C-140236, 
    2015-Ohio-774
    , ¶ 4,
    quoting Clermont Cty. Transp. Improvement Dist. v. Gator Milford, L.L.C., 
    141 Ohio St.3d 542
    , 
    2015-Ohio-241
    , 
    26 N.E.3d 806
    , syllabus. Because Struckman was not
    served with the judgment denying his postconviction petition, App.R. 4(A)(3) tolled
    the time for appealing that judgment. Thus, his appeal from that judgment in C-
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    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    200069 was filed within the time prescribed by App.R. 4(A)(1), and this court has
    jurisdiction to review that judgment.
    {¶8}    Appeal from overruling of Crim.R. 33 motion was not
    timely filed. But proceedings under Crim.R. 33 are not civil in nature. Therefore,
    App.R. 4(A)(3) did not, as Struckman argues, toll the time for appealing the
    overruling of his Crim.R. 33 motion for a new trial.
    {¶9}    Nor was the time for appealing the overruling of the new-trial motion
    tolled under any exception to App.R. 4(A)(1)’s 30-day period provided under App.R.
    4(B). App.R. 4(B)(3) speaks directly to the time for appealing a decision on a
    “timely” filed “post-judgment” motion for a new trial in a criminal case. Under
    App.R. 4(B)(3), when a criminal defendant moves under Crim.R. 33(A) for a new
    trial, whether on grounds of newly discovered evidence or other grounds, and that
    motion is filed within the time provided under Crim.R. 33(B) for filing a motion for a
    new trial on grounds other than newly discovered evidence, the time for appealing
    the judgment of conviction is tolled until the new-trial motion is decided, and the
    decision on the new-trial motion is then reviewable in the direct appeal. Unless that
    exception applies, an appeal from a judgment overruling a Crim.R. 33 motion must
    be filed within App.R. 4(A)(1)’s 30-day period.
    {¶10} Struckman sought a new trial under Crim.R. 33(A)(1) through (4) and
    33(A)(6).     A Crim.R. 33(A)(6) motion for a new trial on the ground of newly
    discovered evidence must be filed within 120 days of the return of the verdict. A
    motion for a new trial on other grounds must be filed within 14 days of the return of
    the verdict. Crim.R. 33(B).
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    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    {¶11} Struckman’s verdicts were returned on May 3, 2018. He filed his
    Crim.R. 33 motion more than three months later, on August 22, 2018. The trial
    court overruled the motion on September 17, 2018. That judgment was appealed on
    May 22, 2020. To the extent that the motion sought a new trial on the ground of
    newly discovered evidence, it was timely filed for purposes of Crim.R. 33, but not for
    purposes of App.R. 4(B)(3)’s tolling provision. To the extent the motion sought a
    new trial on other grounds, it was not timely filed for either purpose.
    {¶12} Thus, App.R. 4(B)(3) did not operate to toll the time for appealing the
    judgment overruling Struckman’s Crim.R. 33 motion. His notice of appeal from that
    judgment in C-200210 was not filed within App.R. 4(A)(1)’s 30-day period. And he
    was not granted, because he did not seek, leave under App.R. 5 to file a delayed
    appeal. Therefore, this court has no jurisdiction to review that judgment, and the
    appeal in C-200210 must be dismissed.
    App. No. C-200069—Postconviction Petition Properly Denied
    {¶13} In the case numbered C-200069, Struckman presents four
    assignments of error that may fairly be read together to challenge the denial of his
    postconviction petition without an evidentiary hearing. Finding no merit to any
    aspect of this challenge, we overrule the assignments of error.
    {¶14} The trial.        Struckman was convicted of unlawfully possessing
    dangerous ordnances upon evidence that he had constructively possessed a MAC-10
    automatic weapon and suppressor that had been seized in a search pursuant to a
    warrant of the house in which he was living. See Struckman, 1st Dist. Hamilton No.
    C-180287, 
    2020-Ohio-1232
    , at ¶ 14. Police Officer Drew Jones of the Lockland
    Police Department testified that he and his partner, Sergeant Patrick Sublet, were
    5
    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    dispatched to the area of 622 Maple Street upon a 911 call reporting “a shot fired.”
    Their investigation led them to the house at 622 Maple Street, because Officer Jones
    had had multiple prior contacts with Struckman there. No one responded when the
    officers knocked on the door. Their observation of security cameras attached to the
    house caused them concern for their safety and prompted them to obtain a warrant
    to search the house and to summon a SWAT team to secure the premises before the
    warrant was executed.
    {¶15} When the SWAT team approached the front door, they saw Struckman
    on the first floor of the house near the front door. The team used “flash bangs” to
    encourage Struckman to come out of the house, and he was turned over to Lockland
    police. The team then went through the house to secure the premises for Lockland
    officers to conduct their search.
    {¶16} Upon entering the house, police observed that the only habitable part
    of the house was a small living area on the second floor, consisting of an eight-by-
    ten-foot room, with a small closet and a walkout balcony to the front of the house.
    The room was furnished with a sofa, coffee table, rug, television monitor, and
    microwave. And it contained a trash bag full of men’s clothing, a suitcase, men’s
    shoes, and empty drink cups and fast-food bags.
    {¶17} Pursuant to the warrant, police seized from the living area multiple
    loaded magazines and a holster for a .45-caliber semi-automatic handgun found
    under the sofa cushions. Nine rounds of ammunition were found in the gun’s ten-
    round magazine.
    {¶18} The door to the closet was open, possibly by force by the SWAT team
    in securing the premises. The closet contained a suit jacket and men’s dress clothes.
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    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    And police seized from the closet multiple boxes containing 600 rounds of .45-
    caliber ammunition.
    {¶19} The fire department was summoned to force open a safe found in the
    closet. From the safe, police seized the MAC-10 and suppressor that Struckman was
    charged with unlawfully possessing, along with a detached stock for the MAC-10, two
    high-capacity magazines fully loaded with .45-caliber ammunition, and a bandolier
    with three fully loaded magazines. A firearm examiner from the Hamilton County
    Coroner’s Office determined that the MAC-10 was a functioning fully-automatic
    weapon, and that the homemade suppressor had been made for the MAC-10.
    {¶20} For the MAC-10 and suppressor, Struckman was charged with two
    counts of unlawful possession of a dangerous ordnance in violation of R.C.
    2923.17(A), along with two specifications under R.C. 2941.144 that he had possessed
    an automatic firearm equipped with a suppressor. Struckman was arrested at 622
    Maple Street. He represented himself at trial. The jury found him guilty as charged.
    And the trial court sentenced him to prison terms totaling seven years.
    {¶21} The appeal. In the direct appeal, we affirmed those convictions. In
    doing so, we overruled assignments of error challenging the weight and sufficiency of
    the evidence to prove that Struckman had constructively possessed the MAC-10 and
    suppressor, the trial court’s failure to secure a waiver of counsel after rejecting
    Struckman’s midtrial request for appointed counsel, and the trial court’s finding that
    Struckman was competent to stand trial.
    {¶22} The postconviction petition.            In the postconviction petition
    from which this appeal derives, Struckman sought relief from his convictions on
    grounds of judicial bias and misconduct and alleged deprivations of the rights to
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    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    counsel and the effective assistance of counsel. The common pleas court denied the
    petition upon concluding that the postconviction claims were barred under the
    doctrine of res judicata, when they were or could have been raised on direct appeal.
    {¶23} To prevail on a postconviction claim, the petitioner must demonstrate
    a denial or infringement of his rights in the proceedings resulting in his conviction
    that rendered the conviction void or voidable under the Ohio or United States
    Constitution. See R.C. 2953.21(A)(1). In advancing that claim, the petitioner bears
    the initial burden of demonstrating, through the petition and any supporting
    affidavits and the files and records of the case, “substantive grounds for relief.” R.C.
    2953.21(C).
    {¶24} A postconviction claim is subject to dismissal without a hearing if the
    petitioner fails to submit with his petition evidentiary material setting forth sufficient
    operative facts to demonstrate substantive grounds for relief. See id.; State v.
    Pankey, 
    68 Ohio St.2d 58
    , 
    428 N.E.2d 413
     (1981); State v. Jackson, 
    64 Ohio St.2d 107
    , 
    413 N.E.2d 819
     (1980).        Conversely, “the court must proceed to a prompt
    hearing on the issues” if “the petition and the files and records of the case show the
    petitioner is * * * entitled to relief.” R.C. 2953.21(E).
    {¶25} The common pleas court denied Struckman’s postconviction claims
    under the doctrine of res judicata. “Under the doctrine of res judicata, a final
    judgment of conviction bars a convicted defendant who was represented by counsel
    from raising and litigating in any proceeding[,] except an appeal from that judgment,
    any defense or any claimed lack of due process that was raised or could have been
    raised by the defendant at the trial [that] resulted in that judgment of conviction, or
    8
    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    on an appeal from that judgment.” State v. Perry, 
    10 Ohio St.2d 175
    , 
    226 N.E.2d 104
    (1967), paragraph nine of the syllabus.
    {¶26} A postconviction petitioner may resist dismissal of a postconviction
    claim under the doctrine of res judicata by supporting his claim with evidence
    outside the record of the proceedings resulting in the conviction. But submitting
    outside evidence will not, by itself, preclude denying the claim under the doctrine of
    res judicata. Outside evidence must be “competent, relevant and material” to the
    claim. The evidence must “meet some threshold standard of cogency,” in the sense
    that it is more than “marginally significant” and “advance[s] the * * * claim beyond
    mere hypothesis and a desire for further discovery.” State v. Coleman, 1st Dist.
    Hamilton No. C-900811, 
    1993 WL 74756
     (Mar. 17, 1993). The evidence must be
    other than cumulative of or alternative to the evidence presented at trial. State v.
    Combs, 
    100 Ohio App.3d 90
    , 98, 
    652 N.E.2d 205
     (1995). Finally, submitting outside
    evidence in support of a postconviction claim will not preclude denying the claim
    under the doctrine of res judicata, if the claim could fairly have been determined on
    direct appeal from the judgment of conviction, based upon the materials contained in
    the trial record. State v. Cole, 
    2 Ohio St.3d 112
    , 114, 
    443 N.E.2d 169
     (1982), syllabus;
    Perry at paragraph nine of the syllabus.
    {¶27} Ineffective assistance of counsel—no outside evidence.
    In his third postconviction claim, Struckman asserted that he had been denied the
    effective assistance of counsel, because standby counsel appointed to assist him in
    representing himself had failed to prepare a defense, investigate or request an
    investigator, inquire into his competency, or investigate “exculpatory evidence” in
    the form of firearm-registration requirements. Struckman did not support this claim
    9
    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    with evidence outside the record of the proceedings resulting in his convictions.
    Therefore, the common pleas court properly denied the claim under the doctrine of
    res judicata.
    {¶28} Ineffective assistance of counsel—motion to suppress.
    In his fourth postconviction claim, Struckman asserted that he had been denied the
    effective assistance of trial counsel, when previously appointed counsel, in moving to
    suppress evidence seized in the search of 622 Maple Street, had “motioned the court
    for a Franks hearing, but * * * did not raise the issue of the sworn statement for
    probable cause [that is, the search-warrant affidavit] having false statements.” In
    support of that claim, Struckman offered outside evidence consisting of a photocopy
    of a portion of a letter directed to him, dated two months before he filed his
    postconviction petition, from an unnamed person in the Office of the Hamilton
    County Public Defender. The letter provided a response to Struckman’s question in
    earlier correspondence concerning whether an unstated “stipulation should also put
    into question the veracity of the [search-warrant affidavit].” The letter’s author
    stated that “the issue of the veracity of the search warrant affidavit [was] raised in a
    motion to suppress,” but “[t]he motion to suppress that was eventually presented in
    this case did not address this issue, and when the testimony at trial later showed that
    the affidavit was wrong, it was too late.”      The letter’s author added that “[t]he
    falsehood in the affidavit does reflect poorly upon the credibility of the state’s
    witnesses.”
    {¶29} Struckman also offered the municipal court’s “probable cause
    checklist” to support his assertion that the affidavit “is not accurate to the checklist.”
    And he pointed to evidence in the trial record. Struckman noted that the search-
    10
    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    warrant affidavit, which was signed by Sergeant Sublet, stated that police responding
    to the 911 call “attempted to contact the male but he has barricaded himself inside
    the residence and is refusing to answer the door.” And Struckman insisted that
    Officer Jones’s trial testimony showed that “there w[ere] not barricades [as]
    fabricated in the [affidavit],” and that “it was stipulated * * * that no shots were fired
    and the gun shot residue test was negative showing that no firearms were fired or
    handled by the defendant.”
    {¶30} To prevail on a claim of ineffective assistance of trial counsel, a
    postconviction petitioner must demonstrate (1) that counsel’s performance fell below
    an objective standard of reasonableness, and (2) that counsel’s deficient performance
    prejudiced him. See Strickland v. Washington, 
    466 U.S. 668
    , 694, 
    104 S.Ct. 2052
    ,
    
    80 L.Ed.2d 674
     (1984). To establish prejudice, the petitioner must demonstrate that
    counsel’s deficient performance “so undermined the proper functioning of the
    adversarial process that the trial could not have reliably produced a just result.”
    State v. Powell, 
    90 Ohio App.3d 260
    , 266, 
    629 N.E.2d 13
     (1993), citing Lockhart v.
    Fretwell, 
    506 U.S. 364
    , 
    113 S.Ct. 838
    , 
    122 L.Ed.2d 180
     (1993), and Strickland.
    {¶31} The affidavit supporting the warrant to search 622 Maple Street stated
    that two people in the vicinity of the house had seen a man on the second floor of the
    house fire a single round from a “black firearm” and then retreat into the house; that
    the victims had subsequently identified the man as Struckman; and that police
    responding to the 911 call had “attempted to contact the male but he has barricaded
    himself inside the residence and is refusing to answer the door.”           The warrant
    authorized a search of the house for “[t]he firearm that was used to fire at the two
    persons,” along with “any other property that is deemed contraband.” Pursuant to
    11
    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    that warrant, police seized from the small second-floor living area multiple loaded
    magazines and a holster for the .45-caliber semi-automatic handgun found under the
    sofa cushions, 600 rounds of .45-caliber ammunition found in the closet, and the
    MAC-10, detached stock, suppressor, and multiple loaded high-capacity magazines
    found in the safe.
    {¶32} Counsel filed a motion to suppress the fruits of the search on the
    ground that the affidavit for the warrant had included false statements material to
    the finding of probable cause. The motion alleged that the victims’ reliability had not
    been established, and that the affidavit had falsely stated that Struckman had fired a
    round at the victims. No witnesses were presented at the hearing on the motion,
    because, as counsel complained, the police officers who had been subpoenaed did not
    appear. Counsel presented a copy of the affidavit and argued that it was overly broad
    and vague, and that it was insufficient to show probable cause because the victims
    were not named in the affidavit and were not otherwise established as reliable
    witnesses.
    {¶33} In its entry overruling the motion, the trial court applied the probable-
    cause analysis provided in Illinois v. Gates, 
    462 U.S. 213
    , 
    103 S.Ct. 2317
    , 
    76 L.Ed.2d 527
     (1983). The court noted that the Gates analysis includes an inquiry into the
    informant’s veracity or the reliability of the informant’s report, and that for purposes
    of the warrant affidavit, a person who reports that he or she was the victim of the
    described criminal conduct is ordinarily considered sufficiently credible to merit
    belief. The court found that “under the totality of the circumstances, the affidavit for
    the search warrant creates a fair probability that evidence of a crime would be found
    at 622 Maple St.” Upon that finding, the court concluded that the warrant had been
    12
    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    properly issued upon probable cause, and that the warrant was not too broad, vague,
    or unreasonable.
    {¶34} At trial, Struckman cross-examined Officer Jones concerning the
    search-warrant affidavit signed by Sergeant Sublet. Asked by Struckman to look at
    photographs of the premises and confirm that they did not show “a barricade,”
    Officer Jones denied ever suggesting that there had been a barricade. Also during
    Officer Jones’s cross-examination, the state stipulated that “no gunshot residue was
    located or the results came back negative with regard to Mr. Struckman.” Struckman
    overcame the state’s objection to this line of questioning by asserting that it was
    relevant, and thus admissible, to show that he had not constructively possessed the
    weapons found in the residence.
    {¶35} In his fourth postconviction claim, Struckman asserted, and offered
    the public defender’s letter to show, that he had been denied the effective assistance
    of counsel, when previous appointed counsel did not challenge the veracity of the
    warrant affidavit with the “false” statements in the affidavit concerning “barricades”
    and “shots fired.” But the trial court expressly found the affidavit credible based not
    on Sergeant Sublet’s statement that Struckman had “barricaded himself inside the
    residence barricade,” but on the presumed credibility of the victims who had
    reported the criminal conduct described in the affidavit.       Moreover, the record
    includes the transcript of the proceedings on the motion to suppress, along with the
    testimony elicited at trial concerning the gunshot-residue test results and the
    absence of “barricades.” Thus, the outside evidence offered in support of the fourth
    claim, consisting of the public defender’s suggestion in his letter that a stronger case
    for suppression could have been made if counsel had used the alleged “falsehoods”
    13
    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    concerning “barricades” and “shots fired” to challenge the affidavit, was not “cogent”
    in the sense that it could not fairly be said to advance beyond mere hypothesis the
    claim of an outcome-determinative deficiency in trial counsel’s presentation of the
    motion to suppress. Therefore, the submission of that evidence did not preclude the
    common pleas court from applying the doctrine of res judicata to deny the claim.
    {¶36} Judicial bias and misconduct and rights to counsel and
    the effective assistance of counsel.              In his first postconviction claim,
    Struckman alleged judicial bias and misconduct and deprivations of the rights to
    counsel and the effective assistance of counsel, when he continued to represent
    himself with standby counsel after he had requested “full counsel” in the middle of
    his trial. In his second postconviction claim, he asserted that standby counsel had
    been ineffective in refusing, without a “proper explanation,” to take over the defense
    when asked to do so “midway” through the trial; in failing to ask the public defender
    about providing counsel; and in requesting, but then leaving it to him to use, trial
    transcripts to impeach witnesses.
    {¶37} Struckman supported those claims with outside evidence in the form
    of an email from the trial court to standby counsel that, Struckman asserted, showed
    that the judge had forced him to continue representing himself. In that email, the
    trial court outlined the procedure that it intended to follow at the upcoming hearing
    on Struckman’s request, made toward the end of trial, that standby counsel take over
    the defense.    And the court asked standby counsel to share the email with
    Struckman.
    {¶38} The record of the proceedings at the hearing showed that the trial
    court followed the procedure outlined in the email. The court recited the events
    14
    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    prompting the hearing. Struckman declined the opportunity to hire private counsel.
    He also declined the court’s offer to ask the public defender, or to ask standby
    counsel to ask the public defender, to appoint an attorney to represent him. And he
    stated that he was “comfortable with continuing with [standby counsel] as standby
    counsel.”
    {¶39} In the direct appeal, this court overruled an assignment of error
    alleging that Struckman had been denied his right to counsel, when following the
    hearing on his midtrial request for counsel, he did not waive his right to counsel. In
    our decision, we detailed how the trial court had substantially complied with the
    Crim.R. 44 waiver requirement. And we concluded that Struckman had not been
    denied his constitutional right to counsel, because he had, in fact, chosen self-
    representation. Struckman, 1st Dist. Hamilton No. C-180287, 
    2020-Ohio-1232
    , at ¶
    21-38.
    {¶40} In his first and second postconviction claims, Struckman alleged that
    the trial court, in refusing his midtrial request for appointed counsel to take over his
    defense, had been biased against him and had, along with standby counsel, denied
    his rights to counsel and the effective assistance of counsel. The outside evidence
    offered in support of those claims, consisting of the trial court’s email to standby
    counsel (and through counsel, to Struckman), outlining the procedure for addressing
    the request that “full counsel” take over the defense, essentially confirmed what this
    court, in the direct appeal, determined that the record showed: that the trial court
    had been committed to complying with the waiver requirement and ensuring that
    Struckman was not denied his right to counsel.          Thus, the first and     second
    postconviction claims either were or could have been fairly determined on direct
    15
    OHIO FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEALS
    appeal, based on matters disclosed in the trial record. Because the email was merely
    cumulative of the evidence of record, its submission did not preclude the common
    pleas court from applying the doctrine of res judicata to deny the first and second
    postconviction claims.
    Appeal Dismissed in C-200210 and Judgment Affirmed in C-200069
    {¶41} To summarize, we hold that this court had no jurisdiction to review the
    common pleas court’s judgment overruling Struckman’s motion for a new trial, because
    the notice of appeal in the case numbered C-200210 was not timely filed. See App.R.
    3(A) and 4; State ex rel. Curran, 
    142 Ohio St. 107
    , 
    50 N.E.2d 995
    , at paragraph seven
    of the syllabus. Accordingly, we dismiss that appeal.
    {¶42} And we hold that the common pleas court did not err in applying the
    doctrine of res judicata to deny Struckman’s postconviction claims, because those
    claims presented matters that could fairly have been determined without resort to
    evidence outside the trial record. See Perry, 
    10 Ohio St.2d 175
    , 
    226 N.E.2d 104
    , at
    paragraph nine of the syllabus; Cole, 2 Ohio St.3d at 114, 
    443 N.E.2d 169
    .
    Accordingly, in the case numbered C-200069, we affirm the court’s judgment
    denying Struckman’s petition for postconviction relief.
    Judgments accordingly.
    CROUSE and WINKLER, JJ., concur.
    Please note:
    The court has recorded its own entry on the date of the release of this opinion.
    16