State of Louisiana v. Charles Monroe

Opinion

STATE OF LOUISIANA * NO. 2019-KA-1014

VERSUS * COURT OF APPEAL CHARLES MONROE * FOURTH CIRCUIT * STATE OF LOUISIANA *******

APPEAL FROM CRIMINAL DISTRICT COURT ORLEANS PARISH NO. 536-591, SECTION “D” Honorable Paul A Bonin, Judge ****** Judge Tiffany G. Chase ****** ON REMAND FROM LOUISIANA SUPREME COURT

(Court composed of Chief Judge James F. McKay, III, Judge Tiffany G. Chase, Judge Dale N. Atkins)

Christopher A. Aberle LOUISIANA APPELLATE PROJECT P.O. Box 8583 Mandeville, LA 70470-8583

COUNSEL FOR APPELLANT/DEFENDANT

VACATED AND REMANDED JULY 01, 2020 TGC JFM DNA This matter is on remand from the Louisiana Supreme Court pursuant to the

United States Supreme Court’s recent decision in Ramos v. Louisiana, No. 18-

5924, 590 U.S. ___, 140 S.Ct. 1390, ___ L.Ed.2d ___ (2020), 2020 WL 1906545

(holding that jury verdicts in state felony trials must be unanimous). State v.

Monroe, 2019-1014 (La.App. 4 Cir. 2/19/20), 293 So.3d 60, writ granted, 2020-

00335 (La. 6/3/20), ___ So.3d ___. For the reasons that follow, we vacate Charles

Monroe’s conviction and sentence and remand for further proceedings.

RELEVANT FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Charles Monroe (hereinafter “Mr. Monroe”) was convicted of second-degree

murder by a ten to two jury verdict. He was sentenced to life imprisonment

without the benefit of probation, parole, or suspension of sentence. On appeal, this

Court affirmed Mr. Monroe’s conviction and sentence based on the

contemporaneous controlling precedent. Monroe, 2019-1014, p. 3, 293 So.3d at

61. Mr. Monroe sought review by the Louisiana Supreme Court. During the

pendency of his writ application, the United States Supreme Court issued its ruling

1 in Ramos. Thereafter, the Louisiana Supreme Court granted Mr. Monroe’s writ

application specifically regarding the issue of the non-unanimous jury verdict.

Monroe, 2019-1014 (La.App. 4 Cir. 2/19/20), 293 So.3d 60, writ granted, 2020-

00335 (La. 6/3/20), ___ So.3d ___.

DISCUSSION

Mr. Monroe’s sole assignment of error challenged the constitutionality of his

conviction by non-unanimous jury verdict. Under Ramos, jury verdicts for felony

convictions must be unanimous. Ramos v. Louisiana, No. 18-5924, 590 U.S. ___,

140 S.Ct. 1390, ___ L.Ed.2d ___ (2020), 2020 WL 1906545. Because Mr.

Monroe’s case was pending on direct review when Ramos was decided, the United

States Supreme Court’s decision in Ramos is applicable. See Schriro v.

Summerlin, 542 U.S. 348, 351, 124 S.Ct. 2519, 2522, 159 L.Ed. 442 (2004)

(observing that “[w]hen a decision of [the United States Supreme Court] results in

a ‘new rule,’ that rule applies to all criminal cases still pending on direct review”).

Therefore, because Mr. Monroe’s conviction was based on a non-unanimous jury

verdict, his conviction and sentence are vacated.

DECREE

For the foregoing reasons, Mr. Monroe’s conviction and sentence for

second-degree murder are vacated and the case is remanded for further

proceedings.

VACATED AND REMANDED