## Facts

- The provided material identifies multiple unrelated cases captioned “State v. Jones” across jurisdictions and subject matters.
- The material highlights an Ohio Supreme Court decision described as addressing appellate review of felony sentences under R.C. 2953.08(G)(2).
- No case-specific factual narrative, procedural history, charges, or sentence details are supplied for the Ohio decision beyond its general subject matter.

## Issues

1. Under R.C. 2953.08(G)(2), may an appellate court modify or vacate a felony sentence by reweighing the purposes and principles of sentencing in R.C. 2929.11 and the seriousness/recidivism factors in R.C. 2929.12?
2. What limits, if any, does R.C. 2953.08(G)(2) impose on appellate review when a trial court’s sentencing entry indicates consideration of R.C. 2929.11 and R.C. 2929.12?

## Decision

- The Ohio Supreme Court held that R.C. 2953.08(G)(2) does not authorize an appellate court to independently reweigh the R.C. 2929.11 and R.C. 2929.12 factors as a basis to modify or vacate a felony sentence.
- The Court limited appellate sentence review to the grounds and findings specified in R.C. 2953.08(G)(2), rather than a general “reasonableness” reassessment of the trial court’s balancing of statutory factors.

## Legal Principles

- Felony-sentence review in Ohio is governed by R.C. 2953.08(G)(2), which sets the exclusive statutory bases for modifying or vacating a sentence on appeal.
- R.C. 2929.11 and R.C. 2929.12 guide the trial court’s sentencing discretion, but disagreement with the trial court’s weighing of those factors is not, by itself, a cognizable basis for reversal under R.C. 2953.08(G)(2).
- Appellate courts may not substitute their judgment for the trial court’s weighing of sentencing considerations when the statute does not authorize that form of review.

## Conclusion

The Ohio Supreme Court construed R.C. 2953.08(G)(2) to bar appellate courts from vacating or modifying felony sentences based on a reweighing of the R.C. 2929.11 and 2929.12 factors, confining sentence review to the specific statutory grounds for relief.


State v. Jones, 163 Ohio St. 3d 242 (Ohio 2020)