State v. Geeslin

{¶ 1} In this appeal, we are asked to determine whether a defendant’s due process rights are violated when evidence in the hands of the state is lost or destroyed. For the reasons that follow, we hold that unless a defendant can show that the state acted in bad faith, the state’s failure to preserve potentially useful evidence does not violate a defendant’s due process rights.

Facts and Procedural History

{¶ 2} Appellant James Geeslin’s vehicle was stopped by Ohio State Highway Patrol Trooper Tim Wenger in the early morning hours of August 16, 2004. At a hearing in the trial court on a motion…