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State v. Frazier3/12/2003
. Defendant-appellant Edward Frazier Jr. appeals the decision of the Youngstown Municipal Court which found him guilty of operating a vehicle under suspension and of operating a vehicle with illegal license plates. Appellant contends that the state failed to prove the requisite mental state for illegal plates and that he proved his affirmative defense of inoperability by a preponderance of the evidence with regards to both offenses. For the following reasons, appellant's conviction for illegal plates is reversed as the requisite mental state was not established, and appellant's conviction for operating under suspension is affirmed as the court's decision that the car was operable was not against the manifest weight of the evidence.
STATEMENT OF FACTS
. On August 4, 2000 at 1:15 a.m., Youngstown police officers stopped behind a vehicle parked at an angle on Thornton Avenue. Appellant was in the driver's seat of the vehicle with the keys in the ignition. The officers issued a parking ticket for parking more than twelve inches from the curb. In doing so, the officers noticed that the license plates did not match the car; neither the car nor the license plates were owned by appellant. The officers also discovered that appellant's driving privileges had been suspended. Thus, appellant was charged with operating a vehicle under suspension in violation of R.C. 4507.02, a first degree misdemeanor, and operating a vehicle with illegal plates in violation of Yo. City Ord. 335.11(A), a fourth degree misdemeanor.
. The case was tried to the court on February 1, 2001. Officer Lee testified that the car was parked in front of a suspected drug house where multiple drug arrests had been made in the past. (Tr. 7). He noted that the car was parked at an angle that implied someone was being dropped off or picked up. (Tr. 23). The officer stated that appellant was in the driver's seat, and the keys were in the ignition. (Tr. 10). The officer also testified that the plates did not belong to the vehicle and appellant's driving privileges had been indefinitely suspended since May 1999. (Tr. 11-13).
. Appellant took the stand in his own defense. He testified that the woman who owned the car often bought and sold cars which he repaired for her since he was a trained mechanic. (Tr. 31). He stated that the woman called him in the day or evening of August 3, 2000 and asked him to look at her car which she parked on Thornton near her house. (Tr. 30, 31, 33). He said he checked the car earlier that day and diagnosed it with having a dragging starter. (Tr. 30, 32). He defined this as meaning the starter gets hot when the car is driven so that when the car is shut off, it must cool down before being started again. (Tr. 32). He also said the car would start eventually as long as the battery was not depleted. (Tr. 38).
. Appellant revealed that he had been drinking that evening and was on prescription medication. He and a friend walked from his house on Wick Avenue to the store to get more alcohol just before it closed at 1:00 a.m. (Tr. 33). He claimed he then walked two blocks down to the car on Thornton to see if it would start. According to appellant's testimony, he got in the driver's seat and turned the key a couple times but was interrupted by the police before he could get the vehicle started. (Tr. 42). He also advised that he had no idea the plates did not match the car. (Tr. 34).
. The court found appellant guilty as charged. A presentence investigation was ordered which apparently showed that he had eight prior convictions for driving under suspension or without an operator's license. The court released its sentencing entry on March 2, 2001. The co
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