State ex rel. Massey v. State

201 So. 3d 243, 2016 La. LEXIS 1747
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana
DecidedSeptember 16, 2016
DocketNo. 2015-KH-1464
StatusPublished

This text of 201 So. 3d 243 (State ex rel. Massey v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State ex rel. Massey v. State, 201 So. 3d 243, 2016 La. LEXIS 1747 (La. 2016).

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

11 Denied. Relator fails to show he received ineffective assistance of counsel under the standard of Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984). Relator’s remaining claims are repetitive and/or unsupported. La.C.Cr.P. art. 930.2; La.C.Cr.P. art. 930.4. We attach hereto and make a part hereof the District Court’s written reasons denying relator’s application.

[244]*244Relator has now fully litigated his application for post-conviction relief in state court. Similar to federal habeas relief, see 28 U.S.C. § 2244, Louisiana post-conviction procedure envisions the filing of a second or successive application only under the narrow circumstances provided in La.C.Cr.P. art. 980.4 and within the limitations period as set out in La.C.Cr.P. art. 930.8. Notably, the Legislature in 2013 La. Acts 251 amended that article to make the procedural bars against successive filings mandatory. Relator’s claims have now been fully litigated in accord with La.C.Cr.P. art. 930.6, and this denial is final. Hereafter, unless he can show that one of the narrow exceptions authorizing the filing of a successive application applies, relator has exhausted his right to state collateral review. The District Court is ordered to record a minute entry consistent with this per curiam.

^Attachment

[245]*245TWENTY FOURTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON STATE OF LOUISIANA

NO, 06-6177

DIVISION “K”

STATE OF LOUISIANA

VERSUS

BRIAN MASSEY

[[Image here]]

ORDER

This matter comes before the court on the petitioner’s APPLICATION FOR POST-CONVICTION RELIEF. STAMPED AS FILED NOVEMBER 15. 2013 AND THE STATE’S REFQNSE, STAMPED AS FILED OCTOBER 30. 2014, AND THE STATE’S SUPPLMENT, STAMPED AS FILED NOVEMBER 10.2014.

On August 27,2010, following a judge trial, the court found the petitioner guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm, a violation of LSA-R.S. 14:95,1. On August 30,2010, a jury convicted the petitioner of second degree murder, a violation of LSA-R.S. 14:30.1. On September 9,2010, the court sentenced him to life imprisonment at hard labor for the murder charge, and to fifteen years incarceration at hard labor for the firearm charge, to run concurrently. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal affirmed his conviction. State v. Massey, 11-358 (La. App. 5 Cir. 5/27/12) 97 So.3d 13; writ denied, State ex rel, Massey v. State, 2012-993 (La. 9/21/12) 98 So.3d 332.

The petitioner has now filed this application for post-conviction alleging the following claims:

1, His Sixth Amendment right to due process and right to a fide and impartial jury under the United States Constitution wete violated when the state used discriminatory practice in the selection of jury during voir dire; Batson claim.
2, His Fifth, Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights of the United States Constitution were violated when the state presented insufficient evidence to prove petitioner was guilty of second degree murder, in violation of LSA-R.S. 14:30.1,
3. His Sixth and Fourteenth Amendment rights of due process and equal protection were violated.as far as prosecutor misconduct on the part of the state for knowingly eliciting false testimony from a witness.
4. His Sixth and Fourteenth Amendment rights of effective assistance of counsel were violated as he was not afforded effective assistance of counsel as guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

The court ordered the state to respond to these claims, raising procedural objections, if any, or respond on the merits. The state has responded and the court will now address each claim.

Claim One: Petitioner's Sixth.Amendment right to due process and right to a fair and impartial jury under the United States Constitution ⅜⅛⅝⅛ violated when the state used diseriminaiory practice in the selection of jury during voir-ZHre; Batson claim.

This ⅛ a Batson1 claim. ThjxSubstance of this claim was raised in the trial court but not on appeal. The petitioner acknojadeOgcs that the claim was not raised on appeal but states his attorney failed to raise it. The petitioner fails to provide any other reason for omitting the claim on appeal and not allowing the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal an opportunity to review the claim. [246]*246The court also notes that the petitioner did not include a Batson claim in a pro se brief to the court of appeal. The petitioner had the opportunity to raise this claim on appeal but failed to do so.

This court finds that this claim is barred from post-conviotion revtew;by application of LSA-C.Cr-P. art. 930.4(C)2-which establishes that the court may deny relief if the application raises a claim which the petitioner raised in the trial court but inexcusably failed to pursue on appeal.

In addition to urging a procedural bar to the claim, the state points out that the co-defondant, tried jointly, raised this Batson oiaim on direct appeal. On the precise facts of this case, the Fifth Circuit rejected Batson arguments, See State v, (Eric) Massey, 11-0347 (La.App. 5 Cir. 3/27/12), 91 So.3d 453, 465-472. The court finds the reasoning in the case that reviewed the same facts to be persuasive. Thus, if the court were to review this claim on the merits, the claim would fail.

Claim Two: Petitioner's Fifth Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights of the United States Constitution were violated when the slate presented Insufficient evidence to prove petitioner was guilty of second degree murder, In violation of LSA-R.S, 14:30,1,

This is a sufficiency of the evidence claim under Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979). Following conviction, the Petitioner filed a Motion for a New Trial, specifically arguing that the eye-witness, Courtney Washington, was too far away to identify the defendant, The claita was not made as an assignment of error on direct appeal, however, Petitioner provides no reason for die omission, other than appellate counsel did not raise the claim,

The court finds this claim barred by application of LSA-O.Cr.P. art,' 930.4(C)3 which provides that the court may deny relief if the application raises a claim which the petitioner raised in the trial court but inexcusably failed to pursue on appeal, This claim was clearly known at the trial court, as evidenced by a Motion far New Trial citing this argument, but not raised on appeal,

The state references the Fifth Circuit’s opinion on appeal, highlighting the Court’s finding that “there was sufficient evidence to prove defendant's guilt as to the second degree murder of Bush without its admission,” State v, Massey, 11-0358 (La.App. 5 Cir. 3/27/12), 97 So.3d 13, 37, Although this court will deny relief on procedural grounds, the.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
201 So. 3d 243, 2016 La. LEXIS 1747, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-massey-v-state-la-2016.