Supreme Court Rules Murder Conviction Unconstitutional

The Ohio Supreme Court has upheld a ruling that the retrial and murder conviction of a Columbus woman was unconstitutional. In 2005, Toneisha Gunnell and three other women were convicted of murder after they hit and killed a man while fleeing security guards after shoplifting from a Springfield mall. Gunnell’s conviction was overturned over an error in jury selection. In her second trial a judge declared a mistrial after a juror admitted researching legal terms online. In a third trial in 2009, Gunnell was convicted on murder and other charges. Then a year later, the 2nd District Court of Appeals overturned her conviction, ruling that it amounted to double jeopardy. On Thursday, the Ohio Supreme Court upheld the appeals court ruling. In a rare 4-3 ruling, the Supreme Court declared the judge erred in declaring a mistrial in Gunnell’s second trial. Writing for the majority, Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor wrote that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled a court can only override a defendant’s objection to a mistrial, as Gunnell had done, if it’s absolutely necessary. O’Connor wrote that the judge speculated about the juror’s intent and did not establish whether the research created bias.