Ohio Supreme Court to hear prosecutor’s appeal in hit-and-run death of firefighter Johnny Tetrick case
Case heads to Ohio’s highest court after appeals panel reduced the most serious conviction
The Ohio Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments Wednesday in a case arising from the 2022 hit-and-run crash that killed Cleveland firefighter Johnny Tetrick while he was working at an active accident scene on Interstate 90.
Tetrick, 51, was struck on Nov. 19, 2022, near Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard as first responders dealt with a rollover crash on the Cleveland Memorial Shoreway. The criminal case centers on the conduct and mental state of the driver, Leander Bissell, and whether the evidence supports a murder conviction tied to felonious assault of a first responder.
What happened and how the case reached the Supreme Court
Court records and prior trial findings describe a multi-agency response in which police vehicles blocked two of the four eastbound lanes. Fire apparatus also arrived on scene. Video from traffic cameras and responding officers’ cameras documented the traffic pattern and the moments leading up to the collision.
Bissell maneuvered around blocked lanes and continued through the emergency area at highway speed. Tetrick was in the roadway when he was hit. Bissell left the scene and was arrested later that night. Tetrick died from his injuries.
Following a bench trial in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, the judge found Bissell guilty on multiple charges, including felony murder, and imposed a sentence totaling 16 years to life in prison.
Why the conviction was partially overturned
In November 2024, the Eighth District Court of Appeals vacated the felony-murder conviction and modified the verdict to involuntary manslaughter, concluding prosecutors did not prove the “knowing” mental state required for felonious assault. The ruling also sent the case back to the trial court for resentencing, a change that would place the potential prison term within a range that can be as high as 11 years for the offense identified by the appellate court.
The legal question before the justices
The Supreme Court is reviewing a narrow but consequential issue: how Ohio law defines “knowingly” in criminal cases and whether a person acts knowingly when they are aware their conduct will probably cause a particular result.
Prosecutors argue the appellate court applied the wrong standard and that the trial judge’s findings support that Bissell acted knowingly, which would reinstate the felonious-assault foundation for the murder conviction and the 16-years-to-life sentence.
Bissell argues the evidence shows, at most, reckless conduct in a chaotic traffic environment, and that “knowing” requires a higher degree of awareness than the state proved at trial.
The decision is expected to clarify how courts distinguish between “knowing” and “reckless” driving behavior when serious harm occurs in or near an active emergency scene.
What comes next
The Supreme Court’s ruling will determine whether the original murder conviction and sentence should be restored or whether the reduced conviction and resentencing ordered by the Eighth District will stand. The outcome will also guide how similar cases involving first responders in roadway emergencies are charged and reviewed across Ohio.