Local

11th District Court affirms sentences for two inmates

By Trumbull County Prosecutor’s Office

December 11, 2023 4:00 AM

The Ohio 11th District Court of Appeals last week affirmed the prison sentences of a Windham man who was given a consecutive term after pleading guilty in March 2023 to an amended charge of attempted failure to comply with order or signal of police officers and receiving stolen property.

Fred Rutherford

Fred Rutherford, 41, who is now incarcerated at Lake Erie Correctional Institution, had filed an appeal stating his 36-month prison sentence was made in error because the Common Pleas Court accepted his guilty pleas without telling him of the possible sentences.

After reviewing the trial transcript of the plea and sentencing hearings, the appellate judges, led by Judge Robert J. Patton and concurred by judges Mary Jane Trapp and Eugene Lucci, ruled the defendant’s assignment of error was without merit, saying Judge Ronald J. Ricet had explained to Rutherford what the maximum potential sentence for each count would be.

Both the attempted failure to comply and receiving stolen property charges are fourth-degree felonies that carry potential maximum sentences of 18 months in prison.

In the case Rutherford on Oct. 14, 2022, was pursued on a motorcycle by officers with the Trumbull County Sheriff’s Office and Warren City Police Department on the southeast side of Warren, near the intersection of Valacamp Drive and U.S. Route 422.

The report stated Rutherford accelerated after the officers put on their lights and sirens. When stopped, authorities learned the motorcycle that Rutherford was driving had been reported stolen.

The state prison website showed Rutherford is expected to be released on May 16, 2026.

Jody A. Elliott

In a separate case involving inmate Jody A. Elliott, the 11th District Court, in a decision written by Judge Matt Lynch and affirmed by Judges John Eklund and Mary Jane Trapp, affirmed the zero jail time credit ordered for Elliott, who was convicted by jury and sentenced to three years in early 2022 by now retired Judge Peter J. Kontos.

In his appeal, Elliott had stated the judge used the wrong case number when pronouncing the jail time credit and sentence. However, the appellate judges sided with the trial judge saying the defendant’s assignment of error was without merit.

Elliott went on trial on a charge of robbery related to him striking a store’s loss prevention officer in the 2019 incident. The jury found Elliott guilty and Judge Kontos on Feb. 25, 2022, ordered Elliott serve a prison term of three years, consecutive to a term served in a separate matter dealing with Elliott’s convictions in a 2019 robbery and drug case.

Elliott, 45, is serving his term at Noble Correctional Institution in Caldwell, Ohio. The state prison website stated his expected release date is Feb. 13, 2026.

Working on both appeals for the Trumbull County Prosecutor’s Office was Assistant Prosecutor Ryan Sanders.