State in Interest of AH

670 So. 2d 361, 95 La.App. 3 Cir. 1094, 1996 La. App. LEXIS 253, 1996 WL 34423
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedJanuary 31, 1996
DocketCR95-1094
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 670 So. 2d 361 (State in Interest of AH) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State in Interest of AH, 670 So. 2d 361, 95 La.App. 3 Cir. 1094, 1996 La. App. LEXIS 253, 1996 WL 34423 (La. Ct. App. 1996).

Opinion

670 So.2d 361 (1996)

STATE In the Interest of A.H.

No. CR95-1094.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

January 31, 1996.

*362 William E. Tilley, Ted Broyles I, Asst. Dist. Atty., Leesville, for State of Louisiana.

Scott Westerchil, Leesville, for Achim D. Hull.

Before THIBODEAUX, SAUNDERS and SULLIVAN, JJ.

SAUNDERS, Judge.

On January 25, 1995, A.H.[1], a juvenile, was charged with one count of distribution of cocaine, a violation of La.R.S. 40:967. On February 1, 1995, A.H. denied the petition for delinquency, and was adjudicated a delinquent as charged on March 29, 1995. A dispositional hearing was held on April 5, 1995 and the trial court ordered the juvenile be committed to the custody of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, Office of Youth Development, for a period not to exceed five years. The court recommended a secure custodial environment placement at Leesville Technical Institute. On April 12, 1995, the juvenile filed a motion to reconsider the sentence, which the trial judge denied. The juvenile now appeals his conviction and sentence alleging three assignments of error.

FACTS

On January 10, 1995, the juvenile, A.H., sold a quantity of crack cocaine to an undercover Leesville police officer. A videotape was made of the drug transaction. Officer Bobby Hickman identified the juvenile in the video as A.H. A.H. was arrested after the lab report came back from the Crime Lab.

ASSIGNMENTS OF ERROR

1. Whether or not the trial court erred in overruling defendant's objection to the *363 trial court acting as the prosecutor and trier of fact within the same proceeding.
2. Whether or not the trial judge erred in rendering a verdict of guilty, in light of the testimony and evidence at trial.
3. Whether or not the sentence imposed upon the juvenile was excessive.

ASSIGNMENT OF ERROR NO. 2

By his second assignment of error, the juvenile contends the evidence was insufficient to convict him.

When issues are raised on appeal both as to the sufficiency of the evidence and as to one or more trial errors, the reviewing court should first determine the sufficiency of the evidence. The reason for reviewing sufficiency first is that the accused may be entitled to an acquittal under Hudson v. Louisiana, 450 U.S. 40, 101 S.Ct. 970, 67 L.Ed.2d 30 (1981), if a rational trier of fact, viewing the evidence in accordance with Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979) in the light most favorable to the prosecution, could not reasonably conclude that all of the essential elements of the offense have been proved beyond a reasonable doubt. When the entirety of the evidence, including inadmissible evidence which was erroneously admitted, is insufficient to support the conviction, the accused must be discharged as to that crime, and any discussion by the court of the trial error issues as to that crime would be pure dicta since those issues are moot.

State v. Hearold, 603 So.2d 731, 734 (La. 1992).

Thus, even though the juvenile placed this assignment second, we will review it first. In a juvenile case, the state has the burden of proving, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the juvenile committed the delinquent act alleged in the petition. La.Ch. Code art. 883. The burden of proof is no less strenuous than the proof standard required in a criminal proceeding against an adult. State In Interest of Tatom, 463 So.2d 35 (La.App. 5 Cir.1985). The due process standards announced in Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979) apply in evaluating the sufficiency of evidence to support an adjudication of delinquency in a juvenile matter. State In Interest of T.L., 514 So.2d 217 (La.App. 5 Cir. 1987).

When the issue of sufficiency of evidence is raised on appeal, the critical inquiry of the reviewing court is whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, rehearing denied, 444 U.S. 890, 100 S.Ct. 195, 62 L.Ed.2d 126 (1979); State ex rel. Graffagnino v. King, 436 So.2d 559 (La.1983); State v. Duncan, 420 So.2d 1105 (La.1982); State v. Moody, 393 So.2d 1212 (La.1981). It is the role of the fact finder to weigh the respective credibilities of the witnesses, and therefore the appellate court should not second guess the credibility determinations of the trier of fact beyond the sufficiency evaluations under the Jackson standard of review. See State ex rel. Graffagnino, citing State v. Richardson, 425 So.2d 1228 (La.1983).

Additionally, appellate review in juvenile delinquency proceedings extends to both law and facts. La. Const.Art. V, § 10(B) (1974); State In Interest of Batiste, 367 So.2d 784 (La.1979); State In Interest of Wilkerson, 542 So.2d 577 (La.App. 1 Cir.1989). The court in Wilkerson stated:

In a juvenile case, when there is evidence before the trier of fact that, upon its reasonable evaluation of credibility, furnished a factual basis for its finding, on review the appellate court should not disturb this factual finding in the absence of manifest error. (citations omitted) Reasonable evaluation of credibility and reasonable inferences of fact should not be disturbed upon review.

Id. at 581.

In order for the state to obtain a conviction in the instant case, it must have proven each element of the offense of distribution of cocaine. In this case, the juvenile mainly contests identity. Where the key issue is not whether the crime has been committed, *364 but whether the defendant was the person who committed it, the state is required to negate any reasonable probability of misidentification in order to carry its burden of proof. State v. Smith, 430 So.2d 31 (La.1983); State v. Long, 408 So.2d 1221 (La.1982). The juvenile further contests the chain of evidence relating to the evidence bag and the rock bought from the drug dealer.

The prosecution called Larry Fulks, a narcotics detective with the Vernon Parish Task Force. Fulks said he and Officer Mike Gore, undercover agent Jeff Jeter, and a confidential informant met at the end of Tower Street in Leesville, Louisiana. He placed a video camera in Jeter's vehicle. Jeter and the confidential informant proceeded to the Crossing Area and made a purchase on Lawrence Street from two suspects. They went further down the street and a young black male approached the vehicle. They purchased a rock of cocaine from him. Jeter and the informant departed and met with Fulks and Gore at Tower Street. Fulks issued Jeter a small plastic bag on which he placed the date of January 10, 1995, the time and Jeter's initials. Jeter knew the name of the subject from whom they had made the first purchase. The rock of crack was placed in the bag. For the second purchase, Fulks issued Jeter a second bag and Jeter put the date, time and his initials. He further put the rock of crack from the purchase in the bag.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
670 So. 2d 361, 95 La.App. 3 Cir. 1094, 1996 La. App. LEXIS 253, 1996 WL 34423, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-in-interest-of-ah-lactapp-1996.