State of Louisiana v. Darell Bell

• Court: Louisiana Court of Appeal
• Decided: January 13, 2021
• Docket: 53,709-KA
• Status: Published

Opinion

Judgment rendered January 13, 2021. Application for rehearing may be filed within the delay allowed by Art. 922, La. C. Cr. P.

No. 53,709-KA

COURT OF APPEAL SECOND CIRCUIT STATE OF LOUISIANA

*****

STATE OF LOUISIANA Appellee

versus

DARELL BELL Appellant

Appealed from the First Judicial District Court for the Parish of Caddo, Louisiana Trial Court No. 347114

Honorable Craig Owen Marcotte, Judge

LOUISIANA APPELLATE PROJECT Counsel for Appellant By: Annette Fuller Roach

JAMES E. STEWART, SR. Counsel for Appellee District Attorney

WILLIAM JACOB EDWARDS ALEX L. PORUBSKY Assistant District Attorneys

Before STONE, COX, and BODDIE (Pro Tempore), JJ. STONE, J.

This criminal appeal arises from the First Judicial District Court,

Caddo Parish, the Honorable Craig Marcotte presiding. Darell Bell pled

guilty to a responsive charge of manslaughter and was sentenced to serve 40

years at hard labor. Bell now appeals his conviction and sentence. Bell’s

counsel has filed a motion to withdraw, along with an Anders brief,1

asserting there are no nonfrivolous issues upon which to base an appeal.

For the following reasons, appellate counsel’s motion to withdraw is

granted, and Bell’s conviction and sentence are affirmed.

FACTS/PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Bell was indicted by a grand jury for the second-degree murder of

Kendarrius Henderson, committed on February 8, 2017, in violation of La.

R.S. 14:30.1. On September 9, 2019, Bell appeared before the trial court

and accepted the state’s plea offer, as follows. The state would allow Bell to

plead guilty to the responsive charge of manslaughter, in violation of La.

R.S. 14:31(A)(1). Additionally, the state agreed to not charge Bell as a

habitual offender. The state agreed to a sentencing range of 10 to 40 years at

hard labor. Furthermore, a pre-sentence investigation (“PSI”) report would

be compiled, and a sentencing hearing would be held to allow for witness

testimony.

Bell accepted the state’s plea offer. The trial court advised Bell that

by pleading guilty, he would waive his right to a jury trial, his right to

remain silent, his right to confront and cross-examine witnesses, and his

right to appeal. Bell acknowledged that he had discussed the charge and

1 Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738, 87 S. Ct. 1396, 18 L. Ed. 2d 493 (1967). plea deal with his attorney. Bell also confirmed that he understood the

charges, the agreed-upon sentencing range, and the rights that he would

waive by pleading guilty. Bell admitted that he was voluntarily pleading

guilty because he shot and killed Kendarrius Henderson and that he was not

coerced.

The state provided the following factual basis for the guilty plea. Bell

discharged a firearm into a stationary motor vehicle, located at 248 N.

Emerald Loop, in Shreveport, striking Kendarrius Henderson in the head and

thereby causing his death. Bell confirmed that these facts were accurate.

The prosecution stated that Bell’s actions would have constituted second

degree murder, except that it was committed in the heat of passion, which

constitutes manslaughter, in violation of La. R.S. 14:31(A)(2).

The trial court found that the guilty plea was freely and voluntarily

made, ordered a PSI report, and set the matter for a sentencing hearing.

Following testimony at the sentencing hearing, the trial court noted

that the state’s pre-sentence memorandum, the defendant’s statement on

sentencing, and the PSI report had all been reviewed. Referencing the PSI,

the trial court noted Bell’s statement of remorse and apology, and that Bell

took responsibility for his actions. The trial court also noted that Bell placed

multiple victims besides Henderson in mortal danger, and that a second

person was shot.

After reviewing the sentencing guidelines in La. C. Cr. P. art. 894.1,

the trial court found the following aggravating factors: Bell used actual

violence in the commission of the offense, and Bell discharged a firearm into

a car, causing two victims to suffer gunshot wounds and one died. The trial

court found that any lesser sentence than the one that would be imposed 2 would deprecate the seriousness of the offense. The trial court did consider

that Bell took responsibility for his actions.

The trial court concluded that the appropriate sentence, in light of the

circumstances of the case, was 40 years at hard labor, with credit for time

served. The trial court advised Bell that he had two years from the date on

which his conviction and sentence became final to seek post-conviction

relief.

On January 21, 2020, Bell filed a motion to reconsider sentence. The

motion was denied on January 29, 2020.

Bell’s assigned attorney from the Louisiana Appellate Project filed a

brief in compliance with Anders v. California, supra; State v. Jyles, 96-2669

(La. 12/12/97), 704 So. 2d 241, 242; State v. Mouton, 95-0981 (La. 4/28/95),

653 So. 2d 1176; and State v. Benjamin, 573 So. 2d 528 (La. App. 4th Cir.

1990). The brief provided an accurate procedural history of the case, the

terms of the plea agreement, the guilty plea colloquy, and the factual basis

for the plea. Counsel found no errors with the guilty plea colloquy and

noted that the sentence imposed was in conformity with the plea agreement.

Counsel noted that, pursuant to his plea agreement and guilty plea, Bell

waived his right to appeal his conviction and sentence without reservation of

his rights. After reviewing the record lodged on appeal, counsel found no

errors patent and no issues preserved for appeal. Furthermore, counsel

found no errors that warranted setting aside the guilty plea and no non-

frivolous errors that would be subject to appellate review.

In light of the foregoing, counsel also filed a motion to withdraw. In

light of the Anders brief, the state declined to file a brief.

3 DISCUSSION

Review of the record revealed no non-frivolous errors regarding the

guilty plea or the imposed sentence, which was statutorily valid and imposed

in conformity with the plea agreement. The record shows that Bell’s plea of

guilty waived all nonjurisdictional defects in the proceedings prior to the

plea. State v. McGarr, 52,641, 52,642 (La. App. 2 Cir. 4/10/19), 268 So. 3d

1189; State v. Stephan, 38,612 (La. App. 2 Cir. 8/18/04), 880 So. 2d 201.

Furthermore, under La. C. Cr. P. art. 881.2, Bell is barred from seeking

appellate review of his sentence as it was imposed in conformity with a plea

agreement which was set forth in the record at the time of his plea. The

guilty plea colloquy was valid under Boykin v. Alabama, 395 U.S. 238, 242,

89 S. Ct. 1709, 1712, 23 L. Ed. 2d 274 (1969),

The record has also been reviewed for errors patent and none were

found.

CONCLUSION

For the foregoing reasons, the motion to withdraw is granted, and

Bell’s conviction and sentence are affirmed.

MOTION TO WITHDRAW GRANTED; CONVICTION AND

SENTENCE AFFIRMED.