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Youngstown man who alleged wife’s death was accident loses appeal

TRACEY BLAIR
Legal News Reporter

Published: December 3, 2021

The 7th District Court of Appeals has affirmed the convictions and sentence of a Youngstown man who was seen beating his wife in public before she died at a hospital of blunt force trauma.
Jason Hymes Sr. was found guilty by a Mahoning County Common Pleas Court jury of murder, felonious assault and other offenses for the death of Ryan Hymes. He was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison on the murder count, plus an additional eight years for felonious assault.
On appeal, he argued the trial court improperly allowed evidence of his prior assaults against his wife.
On Feb. 13, 2019, the victim went to a bar with her husband in Youngstown. A video obtained from the bar’s outdoor surveillance system showed Hymes’ lengthy assault on the victim in the parking lot.
The victim attempted to escape several times, and Jason Hymes’ brother was seen on the video being punched by the appellant while trying to hold the appellant back. Several bystanders also attempted to intervene, but the appellant was able to drive away with the victim back to their home.
The victim’s 12-year-old daughter testified she called 911 after seeing the appellant punch her visibly-injured mother in the face during a loud argument. Officers were dispatched to the residence for a report of a fight. After conducting a welfare check on the woman, the officers left without making an arrest.
Jason Hymes’ brother and his wife later went to the home to find the victim – who had no history of seizures - unresponsive. Jason Hymes eventually admitted striking the victim twice at the bar. He continued to deny hitting the victim while they were at home that night.
The victim’s breathing machine was stopped with the family’s consent. She died two days after the assault.
Jason Hymes alleged the victim’s death was caused by a slip and fall. The appellate court first addressed his claim there was no “substantial proof” he committed the other acts of violence against the victim since the testimony was not corroborated with a police report or hospital record.
However, 7th District Judge Carol Ann Robb stated in her majority opinion that a jury can reasonably conclude the prior acts occurred and that the defendant was the perpetrator.
“The jury could evaluate the credibility of the victim’s sister and the victim’s child who claimed to have witnessed certain acts,” Judge Robb wrote. “Moreover, the detective testified as to appellant’s own admissions about: prior physical arguments, the victim lying for him at the hospital in the past, and a specific incident where the victim ended up with a head wound and appellant claimed she slipped and fell during a fight.”
Jason Hymes repeatedly claimed to his brother, sister-in-law and police that the victim was injured at home as a result of an accident where she fell in a bedroom while running to pack and leave the house.
“The jury heard strong evidence of appellant’s violence toward the victim on the night her demise began: the video showed appellant striking the victim’s head with his fist at least twice and causing her head to hit the truck, and later, the victim’s child heard the victim begging appellant to stop while banging emanated from their location in the basement and then witnessed him punch the victim in the face. Furthermore, as the trial court concluded, prejudice was lessened by the jury instruction,” Judge Robb stated.
At the end of trial, the court instructed the jury: “Evidence was received about the commission of other acts other than the offenses with which the defendant is charged in this trial. That evidence was received only for the limited purpose. It was not received and you may not consider it to prove the character of the defendant in order to show that he acted in accordance with that character. If you find that the evidence of other acts is true and that the defendant committed them, you may consider that evidence only for the purpose of deciding whether it proves the absence of mistake.”
Appellate judges Gene Donofrio and Cheryl L. Waite concurred. The case is cited State v. Hymes, 2021-Ohio-3439.



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