State v. Castonguay , 2021 Ohio 3116 ( 2021 )

[Cite as State v. Castonguay, 2021-Ohio-3116.]
IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF OHIO
SECOND APPELLATE DISTRICT
DARKE COUNTY
STATE OF OHIO :
:
Plaintiff-Appellee : Appellate Case No. 2021-CA-2
:
v. : Trial Court Case No. 2020-CR-119
:
COREY D. CASTONGUAY : (Criminal Appeal from
: Common Pleas Court)
Defendant-Appellant :
:
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OPINION
Rendered on the 10th day of September, 2021.
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DEBORAH S. QUIGLEY, Atty. Reg. No. 0055455, Darke County Prosecutor’s Office, 504
South Broadway Street, Greenville, Ohio 45331
Attorney for Plaintiff-Appellee
ALEXANDER S. PENDL, Atty. Reg. No. 0093792, 121 West Third Street, Greenville,
Ohio 45331
Attorney for Defendant-Appellant
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DONOVAN, J.
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{¶ 1} Defendant-appellant Corey D. Castonguay appeals from his convictions for
the following offenses: Count I, grand theft, in violation of R.C. 2913.02(A)(3), a felony of
the third degree; and Count II, misuse of a credit card, in violation of R.C. 2913.21(B)(2),
a felony of the fourth degree. Castonguay filed a timely notice of appeal on January 27,
2021.
{¶ 2} The record establishes that in March 2020, the victim, 72-year-old David
Paxson, resided with his wife in Versailles, Ohio, located in Darke County. Paxson
maintained bank accounts with Wright-Patt Credit Union (WPCU). Paxson had been a
member of WPCU since 1985, and the accounts were in his and his wife’s names.
Paxson generally banked with WPCU online because it did not have any physical
locations in Darke County.
{¶ 3} Paxson testified that on either March 18 or 19, 2020, he accessed his WPCU
accounts online and found that someone had transferred $4,000 from his savings account
into the account of Castonguay. Paxson testified that he did not know Castonguay.
Paxson immediately called the WPCU Fraud Department and the Darke County Sheriff’s
Department to report the theft of his money.
{¶ 4} Paxson testified that, the following day, he again accessed his WPCU
accounts online and discovered that over $8,000 had been transferred from his credit
card to Castonguay. Paxson again contacted the WPCU Fraud Department. Paxson
and his wife, Beverly, both testified that they did not know Castonguay and at no time did
they transfer or authorize a transfer of money to Castonguay from their WPCU credit card
or savings account on March 18, 2020.
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{¶ 5} The evidence adduced at trial established that on March 18, 2020,
Castonguay traveled to the Wright Dunbar branch of WPCU on Third Street in Dayton,
Ohio, and opened an account. WPCU associate Megan Kammer testified that she
helped Castonguay open the account with $10 in cash, of which he deposited $5 into the
new account. The majority of the transaction, which occurred at approximately 12:30
p.m., was recorded by security cameras inside the credit union. Notably, in the security
footage presented at trial, no one was wearing a mask.
{¶ 6} Later the same day, an individual claiming to be Paxson contacted the WPCU
call center at approximately 4:13 p.m. and spoke with Sandra Goodchild, another WPCU
associate. The call was recorded. Goodchild testified that, as part of WPCU protocol,
she asked the caller questions regarding Paxson’s identity and account information in
order to verify with whom she was speaking. Goodchild testified that, after she believed
that she had properly verified the caller’s identity, she authorized a transfer of $8,786 from
Paxson’s WPCU credit card to Castonguay’s newly opened WPCU account.
Significantly, Goodchild testified that the caller claiming to be Paxson did not provide a
credit card number, and Goodchild did not ask for that information. Goodchild testified
that she generated a receipt for the transaction. Upon listening to the recording of the
conversation, Paxson testified that the information provided by the caller to Goodchild
was incorrect, and that he did not make the call authorizing the transfer of funds from his
credit card to Castonguay’s account.
{¶ 7} At trial, the State introduced its Exhibit 5, which was bank surveillance
footage depicting a transaction initiated by Castonguay on March 18, 2020, at the
Northwest WPCU branch located in Englewood, Ohio. Specifically, the surveillance
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footage depicted Castonguay making a withdrawal of $8,700 from his newly opened
WPCU account. The receipt for the withdrawal established that the transaction occurred
at 4:26 p.m. on March 18, 2020.
{¶ 8} Christian Anderson, an associate at the WPCU Beavercreek call center,
testified that on March 18, 2020, he was contacted by an individual claiming to be Paxson
at approximately 6:04 p.m. The call was recorded. Anderson testified that the individual
stated that he wanted to transfer funds from his WPCU savings account. Like Goodchild,
Anderson testified that he asked the caller questions regarding Paxson’s identity and
account information in order to verify with whom he was speaking. Anderson testified
that the caller appeared confused. Although Anderson testified that he did not recall
whether he properly verified the information provided by the caller, he nevertheless
authorized a transfer of $4,000 from Paxson’s savings account into Castonguay’s new
account. Again, upon hearing the recording of the conversation, Paxson testified that
the information provided by the caller to Anderson was incorrect and that he did not make
the call authorizing the transfer of funds from his WPCU savings account to Castonguay’s
account.
{¶ 9} Javan McCarty, an associate at the WPCU Woodman Center-Kettering
branch, testified that on March 18, 2020, Castonguay entered the branch at approximately
6:08 p.m. and initiated a transaction which was recorded by security cameras inside the
credit union. McCarty testified that Castonguay withdrew $2,500 from his new account
and exchanged coins for $21 in cash. McCarty testified that Castonguay provided his
identification in order to verify his identity.
{¶ 10} The final transaction conducted by Castonguay occurred at approximately
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6:41 p.m. at the Cross-Pointe WPCU branch. The transaction was recorded by security
cameras, and a receipt of the transaction was generated by WPCU. In this transaction,
Castonguay requested and received a certified cashier’s check in the amount of $1,500,
with the payee being someone named Morgan Butler. In this instance, WPCU put a stop
payment order on the cashier’s check, and no one ever attempted to cash it.
{¶ 11} Darke County Sheriff’s Deputy Mark Garbig obtained all of the WPCU
surveillance footage of the transactions conducted by Castonguay on March 18, 2020.
Deputy Garbig testified that he was able to verify Castonguay’s identity by matching the
information he provided when he opened his WPCU account and his image from the
surveillance footage with his driver’s license.
{¶ 12} On July 23, 2020, Castonguay was indicted for one count of grand theft, in
violation of R.C. 2913.02(A)(3), a felony of the fourth degree, and one count of misuse of
a credit card, in violation of R.C. 2913.21(B), also a felony of the fourth degree. However,
on September 24, 2020, the State filed an amended indictment charging Castonguay with
grand theft, in violation of R.C. 2913.02(A)(3), a felony of the third degree (the victim being
an elderly person) and misuse of a credit card, in violation of R.C. 2913.21(B)(2), a felony
of the third degree (the victim being an elderly person).
{¶ 13} On January 21, 2021, the State filed a notice of intent to provide witness
testimony via live video conferencing, citing the Covid-19 pandemic and the need to
protect the public. Notably, all the witnesses that were mentioned in the State’s notice
of intent were located outside of Darke County. On January 22, 2021, the trial court
granted the State’s motion to allow out-of-town witnesses to testify through video
conferencing.
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{¶ 14} On January 25, 2021, a bench trial was conducted. At the outset of the
trial, an oral motion was made by the State to amend the amended indictment in order to
reduce count 2, misuse of a credit card, to a felony of the fourth degree. The trial court
granted the amendment. At the close of evidence, Castonguay orally moved for acquittal
pursuant to Crim.R. 29, citing venue. On January 26, 2021, the trial court issued a brief
entry overruling Castonguay’s Crim.R. 29 motion. On the same day, the trial court
issued a judgment entry of conviction in which it found Castonguay guilty of the charged
offenses. The trial court merged the convictions for sentencing, and the State elected to
proceed on Count I, grand theft, a felony of the third degree. The trial court sentenced
Castonguay to 12 months in prison.
{¶ 15} Castonguay now appeals.
{¶ 16} Castonguay’s first assignment of error is as follows:
THE TRIAL COURT ERRED BY DENYING APPELLANT’S CRIMINAL
RULE 29 MOTION FOR A JUDGMENT OF ACQUITTAL.
{¶ 17} Castonguay contends that the trial court erred when it overruled his Crim.R.
29 motion for acquittal based upon venue. Specifically, Castonguay argues that venue
in Darke County was improper because “not a single element of the charged offenses
was committed by Appellant in Darke County.” Appellant’s Brief p. 5.
{¶ 18} Pursuant to Article I, Section 10 of the Ohio Constitution and R.C. 2901.12,
“evidence of proper venue must be presented in order to sustain a conviction for an
offense.” State v. Hampton, 134 Ohio St.3d 447, 2012-Ohio-5688, 983 N.E.2d 324, ¶ 20.
“It is not essential that the venue of the crime be proven in express terms, provided it be
established by all the facts and circumstances in the case, beyond a reasonable doubt,
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that the crime was committed in the county and state as alleged in the indictment.” Id. at
¶ 19, quoting State v. Dickerson, 77 Ohio St. 34, 82 N.E. 969 (1907), paragraph one of
the syllabus. Circumstantial evidence may be used to establish venue. State v. Brown,
2017-Ohio-8416, 99 N.E.3d 1135, ¶ 33 (2d Dist.), citing State v. May, 2015-Ohio-4275,
49 N.E.3d 736, ¶ 24 (8th Dist.).
{¶ 19} A challenge to venue raised through a Crim.R. 29 motion for a judgment of
acquittal preserves for appeal the issue of the sufficiency of the evidence regarding
venue. See State v. Hibbler, 2d Dist. Clark No. 2001-CA-43, 2002-Ohio-4464, ¶ 23.
{¶ 20} Ohio's venue statute provides that the trial of a criminal case “shall be held
in a court having jurisdiction of the subject matter, and * * * in the territory of which the
offense or any element of the offense was committed.” R.C. 2901.12(A). R.C.
2901.12(C) states:
(C) When the offense involved the unlawful taking or receiving of property
or the unlawful taking or enticing of another, the offender may be tried in
any jurisdiction from which or into which the property or victim was taken,
received, or enticed.
{¶ 21} The statute further provides as follows:
(H) When an offender, as part of a course of criminal conduct, commits
offenses in different jurisdictions, the offender may be tried for all of those
offenses in any jurisdiction in which one of those offenses or any element
of one of those offenses occurred. Without limitation on the evidence that
may be used to establish the course of criminal conduct, any of the following
is prima-facie evidence of a course of criminal conduct:
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(1) The offenses involved the same victim, or victims of the same type or
from the same group.
(2) The offenses were committed by the offender in the offender's same
employment, or capacity, or relationship to another.
(3) The offenses were committed as part of the same transaction or chain
of events, or in furtherance of the same purpose or objective.
(4) The offenses were committed in furtherance of the same conspiracy.
(5) The offenses involved the same or a similar modus operandi.
(6) The offenses were committed along the offender's line of travel in this
state, regardless of the offender's point of origin or destination.
R.C. 2901.12(H).
{¶ 22} Finally, R.C. 2901.12(I) states:
(I)(1) When the offense involves a computer, computer system, computer
network, telecommunication, telecommunications device,
telecommunications service, or information service, the offender may be
tried in any jurisdiction containing any location of the computer, computer
system, or computer network of the victim of the offense, in any jurisdiction
from which or into which, as part of the offense, any writing, data, or image
is disseminated or transmitted by means of a computer, computer system,
computer network, telecommunication, telecommunications device,
telecommunications service, or information service, or in any jurisdiction in
which the alleged offender commits any activity that is an essential part of
the offense.
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(2) As used in this section, “computer,” “computer system,” “computer
network,” “information service,” “telecommunication,” “telecommunications
device,” “telecommunications service,” “data,” and “writing” have the same
meanings as in section 2913.01 of the Revised Code.
{¶ 23} As previously stated, Castonguay argues that venue in Darke County was
improper because he did not commit any element of the charged offenses in Darke
County. In support of his argument, Castonguay cites to our decision in State v. Moore,
2d Dist. Montgomery No. 24957, 2012-Ohio-3604, wherein the defendant wrote two
checks from an escrow account from her title company to purchase a residence she had
been renting from her landlord; however, the money in the escrow account was not hers,
but rather that of her client. The defendant’s title company was located in Warren
County. We found that venue in Montgomery County was proper because the defendant
presented the two checks to her landlord at a public library located in Montgomery County,
and the landlord deposited the checks at a bank also located in Montgomery County.
{¶ 24} In support of his argument, Castonguay also cites to State v. Cannon, 11th
Dist. Lake No. 98-L-032, 1999 WL 476111 (June 30, 1999), wherein the court held that
venue was proper in a theft case involving forged checks. In Cannon, the defendant
deposited a forged check at an ATM located in Cuyahoga County, but the money was
eventually deposited in her personal account at a bank located in Lake County. Relying
on R.C. 2901.12(I)(1), the Cannon court held that venue was proper in Lake County.
Notably, the Cannon court stated:
However, the legislature has more recently enacted R.C. 2901.12(I)(1),
which provides that when the offense involves a computer, computer
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system, or computer network, the offender may be tried in any venue
containing any location of the computer, computer system, or computer
network of the victim. This statute was enacted, in part, to simplify various
complex venue situations produced by the proliferation of computer
networks. Unlike 1882, when Lindsey was decided, today's banking industry
allows for a customer to access her account from almost any location on
the globe. Appellant's bank account was located in Painesville. Depositing
the forged check into an ATM machine in Cleveland had the same effect as
presenting the check to a teller at her bank in Painesville.
(Emphasis added.) Id. at *6.
{¶ 25} Castonguay next cites to State v. Clapp, 12th Dist. Fayette No. CA87-01-
001, 1987 WL 13712 (June 29, 1987), wherein the appellate court found that the trial
court erred when it denied defendant’s Crim.R. 29 motion for acquittal because the State
failed to prove venue. In Clapp, the defendant traveled out of Fayette County into
Mahoning County in his employer’s truck with his employer’s consent. After driving to
Mahoning County, the defendant lost contact with his employer, and the truck was
recovered weeks later in Virginia. The Clapp court found that the defendant did not
develop a purpose to steal the truck until he arrived in Mahoning County. Thus, Clapp
held that Fayette County was not the proper venue, and the trial court should have
granted defendant’s Crim.R. 29 motion for acquittal.
{¶ 26} Lastly, Castonguay cites State v. King, 10th Dist. Franklin Nos. 88AP-665,
88AP-1082, 1989 WL 83577 (July 18, 1989). In King, a codefendant obtained a check
for $10,000 from a state official at a restaurant in Cuyahoga County. The codefendant
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then deposited the check into a checking account in a bank in Lake County and wrote
checks to the defendant and two other individuals. The defendant took all three checks,
and while in Lake County, endorsed one of the checks in another individual’s name before
giving the checks to another individual to cash. The defendant was later found guilty of
forgery by a trial court located in Franklin County. Ultimately, the King court reversed
the defendant’s conviction for forgery, holding that the fact that the $10,000 check
originated in Franklin County was insufficient to establish that Franklin County was the
proper venue over the offense committed by defendant in Lake County.
{¶ 27} Here, we find that the holdings in Clapp and King cited by Castonguay are
distinguishable from the instant case, as neither case involved multi-jurisdictional
electronic fund transfers or computer online access to electronically-stored financial
records. Recently, the Tenth District stated as follows:
“R.C. 2901.12(G) and (H) are statutory reflections of the modern mobility of
criminals to perform unlawful deeds over vast geographical boundaries.”
State v. Draggo, 65 Ohio St.2d 88, 90, 418 N.E.2d 1343 (1981).
Consistent with this multi-county venue, “a grand jury of one county has
authority to indict on offenses occurring in other counties provided that
those offenses are part of a course of criminal conduct.” State v. Ahmed,
8th Dist. No. 84220, 2005-Ohio-2999, ¶ 11.
State v. Armengau, 10th Dist. Franklin No. 18AP-276, 2019-Ohio-1010, ¶ 14.
{¶ 28} The offenses committed by Castonguay were committed “as part of the
same transaction or chain of events, or in furtherance of the same purpose or objective,”
namely to deprive Paxson and his wife of funds contained in their electronically-stored
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bank accounts at WPCU. See R.C. 2901.12(H)(3) and (I)(1). We agree with the trial
court’s finding that, while money from bank accounts is traditionally physically stored at a
bank branch, the Paxsons’ electronic property (money) was also located at their
residence in Darke County based upon their ability to access it by computer and
telephone. Therefore, Castonguay’s course of conduct included that Paxson resided in
Darke County. Essentially, modern online access to electronic financial records “makes
a home computer equal in function to a traditional bank physical branch bank location.”
Trial Court Decision (Jan. 26, 2021), p. 2.
{¶ 29} We agree with the trial court that Castonguay’s conduct in depriving the
Paxsons of their electronically-stored money occurred in Montgomery County when it was
“physically transferred in paper currency” to Castonguay and also when the electronic
funds were transferred from the Paxsons’ WPCU account and credit card to Castonguay’s
account. Additionally, Castonguay’s offenses also occurred in Darke County when the
Paxsons’ were deprived of the use of their electronically-stored property (money).
Specifically, on March 19, 2020, Paxson was deprived of his electronically-stored funds
in Darke County when he accessed his accounts and discovered that a significant amount
of his money had been withdrawn from his savings account and credit card without his
consent. As previously stated, pursuant to R.C. 2901.12(I)(1), when the offense involves
a computer, computer system, or computer network, the offender may be tried in any
venue containing any location of the computer, computer system, or computer network of
the victim.
{¶ 30} Accordingly, the trial court correctly found that venue was proper in Darke
County and that the conduct of Castonguay represented the type of “modern mobility of
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criminals to perform unlawful deeds over vast geographical boundaries.” See Draggo, 65
Ohio St.2d at 90, 418 N.E.2d 1343. In light of the foregoing, we find that the trial court
did not err when it overruled Castonguay’s Crim.R. 29 motion for acquittal based upon
venue.
{¶ 31} Castonguay’s first assignment of error is overruled.
{¶ 32} Castonguay’s second assignment of error is as follows:
THE TRIAL COURT ERRED BY PERMITTING THE STATE’S
WITNESSES TO TESTIFY REMOTELY IN VIOLATION OF APPELLANT’S
RIGHT TO CONFRONT WITNESSES AGAINST HIM PURSUANT TO THE
SIXTH AMENDMENT TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION.
{¶ 33} Castonguay argues that the trial court erred when it permitted three of the
State’s witnesses to testify remotely without a proper showing of necessity, thereby
violating his right to confrontation.
{¶ 34} The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution, made applicable
to the states by the Fourteenth Amendment, affords criminal defendants the right “to be
confronted with the witnesses against” them. Maryland v. Craig, 497 U.S. 836, 844, 110
S.Ct. 3157, 111 L.Ed.2d 666 (1990). While “face-to-face confrontation forms ‘the core
of the values furthered by the Confrontation Clause,’ ” “the face-to-face confrontation
requirement is not absolute.” (Citation omitted.) Id. at 847, 850. Rather, “ ‘the
Confrontation Clause reflects a preference for face-to-face confrontation at trial[ ]’ * * *
that ‘must occasionally give way to considerations of public policy and the necessities of
the case[.]’ ” (Citations omitted.) (Emphasis sic.) Id. at 849. “The requisite finding of
necessity must of course be a case-specific one,” based on evidence presented to the
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trial court. Id. at 855.
{¶ 35} In State v. Marcinick, 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 89736, 2008-Ohio-3553, the
appellate court determined that the use of a live video link to allow a key prosecution
witness to testify from Belgium did not violate the defendant's confrontation right. Id. at
¶ 22. The court set forth the following test for determining whether an alternative to face-
to-face confrontation qualifies as an exception to the Confrontation Clause:
[T]he procedure must (1) be justified, on a case-specific finding, based on
important state interests, public policies, or necessities of the case and (2)
must satisfy the other three elements of confrontation – oath, cross-
examination, and observation of the witness's demeanor.
Id. at ¶ 18, citing Craig at 849-851.
{¶ 36} The Marcinick court reasoned that the State had “demonstrated the
unavailability of the witness and the admissibility of the testimony,” and that “[t]he live two-
way link preserved the reliability elements of confrontation: the witness testified under
oath; was subject to cross-examination; and, the trial court and [the defendant] could
observe the witness' demeanor while testifying.” Id. The court thus determined that the
trial court did not err by admitting the remote testimony. Id.{¶ 37} In support of his argument that he was denied his right to confront three of
the State’s witnesses who were permitted to testify remotely, Castonguay cites State v.
Oliver, 2018-Ohio-3667, 112 N.E.3d 573 (8th Dist.). In Oliver, the appellate court
concluded that the trial court erred by allowing a witness residing in Florida to testify by
Skype, because that witness “was not unavailable,” but merely would be
“inconvenienced” if she were required to travel to Ohio to personally appear at trial. Id.-15-
at ¶ 24. In distinguishing Oliver, we recently stated:
The facts here are readily distinguishable; [the remotely testifying witness’]
circumstances presented a matter not of simple convenience, but of
potentially serious health consequences. [He had “multiple medical
conditions that impeded his ability to travel.”] Furthermore, in Oliver, the
same appellate court concluded that the trial court was justified in permitting
a different witness to testify remotely from Kentucky, as that witness was
caring for her husband who was undergoing dialysis following a liver
transplant. Id. at ¶ 22. The trial court did not err by concluding that
permitting [the witness] to testify remotely was justified.
State v. Howard, 2020-Ohio-3819, 156 N.E.3d 433, ¶ 59.
{¶ 38} In the trial court’s decision permitting the State’s witnesses to testify
remotely, it stated the following:
4. Proposed changes to the Ohio Rules of Criminal Procedure currently
published for public comment explicitly allow testimony by
contemporaneous audio/video methods. The frequency of use of remote
methods was accelerated by the 2020 Covid-19 conundrum [and] has
demonstrated both the need for such methods as well as the efficacy of
such methods. * * *
5. Since 2001, this Court has used the remote contemporaneous
audio/video method and the Court takes notice of the practical efficacy and
economic benefits of such method.
Judgment Entry (Jan. 22, 2021), p. 2.
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{¶ 39} The three State’s witnesses whose remote testimony Castonguay objected
to were Kammer, McCarty, and Brendon Allen. All three witnesses lived and worked
outside of Darke County, where Castonguay’s trial was held. None of the witnesses had
had any health problems that made it difficult or impossible to attend the trial and testify
in person. Castonguay argues that under these circumstances, the witnesses were
merely inconvenienced and that was an insufficient basis upon which to allow the
witnesses to testify remotely. However, as noted by the trial court, the effect of the
Covid-19 “conundrum” has served to make it a matter of public policy and health concerns
to allow witnesses to testify remotely. Furthermore, the State argued that it made the
request for the three witnesses to testify remotely, in part, because of its concerns
regarding the pandemic and the need for the health and safety of the public.
{¶ 40} Additionally, the record clearly establishes that the trial court complied with
the requirements set forth in Marcinick and repeated in Howard. Specifically, Kammer,
McCarty, and Allen testified under oath, Castonguay, opposing counsel, and the trial court
could each observe the witnesses as they testified remotely, and each of the witnesses
was subjected to cross-examination. Upon reviewing the transcript, it appears there was
only one instance when the video feed froze during Kammer’s remote testimony, and the
issue was resolved quickly without incident. The transcript reveals no further glitches
with the video feed.
{¶ 41} In light of the record before us, therefore, even if we were to find that the
trial court erred in allowing the witnesses to testify remotely because the State did not
sufficiently justify the witnesses’ unavailability, we note that a confrontation clause error
does not require an automatic reversal. “A constitutional error can be held harmless if
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we determine that it was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt.” State v. Conway, 108
Ohio St.3d 214, 2006-Ohio-791, 842 N.E.2d 996, ¶ 78, citing Chapman v. California, 386
U.S. 18, 24, 87 S.Ct. 824, 17 L.Ed.2d 705 (1967). Whether a Sixth Amendment error is
harmless beyond a reasonable doubt depends on “whether there is a reasonable
possibility that the evidence complained of might have contributed to the conviction.”
Conway at ¶ 78, citing Chapman at 23. The record establishes that the trial court here
took precautions to ensure that the remote testimony did not violate Castonguay’s right
to confrontation. Having thoroughly reviewed the record, we cannot say there is a
reasonable possibility that the remote nature of the three witnesses’ testimony contributed
to Castonguay’s conviction. Even if the State did not sufficiently justify the witnesses’
testifying remotely, we find the trial court’s admission of the witnesses’ remote testimony
harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. Accord State v. Durst, 6th Dist. Huron No. H-18-
019, 2020-Ohio-607 (while a witness should not have been permitted to testify remotely
because the State did not establish that he was unavailable to appear in person, the
admission of the remote testimony without a preliminary showing of unavailability was
harmless error).
{¶ 42} Castonguay’s second assignment of error is overruled.
{¶ 43} The judgment of the trial court is affirmed.
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HALL, J. and EPLEY, J., concur.
Copies sent to:
Deborah S. Quigley
Alexander S. Pendl
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Hon. Jonathan P. Hein