State v. Ambeau

6 So. 3d 215, 2008 La.App. 4 Cir. 1191, 2009 La. App. LEXIS 218, 2009 WL 368247
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedFebruary 11, 2009
DocketNo. 2008-KA-1191
StatusPublished
Cited by29 cases

This text of 6 So. 3d 215 (State v. Ambeau) 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 v. Ambeau, 6 So. 3d 215, 2008 La.App. 4 Cir. 1191, 2009 La. App. LEXIS 218, 2009 WL 368247 (La. Ct. App. 2009).

Opinion

TERRI F. LOVE, Judge.

_JjThe defendant, Darrel Ambeau (hereinafter “Defendant” or “Ambeau”) was charged with one count of violating La. R.S. 14:64, armed robbery, and one count of violating La. R.S. 14(27)64, attempted armed robbery. Ambeau appeared before the trial court for arraignment and pled not guilty to both charges. The trial judge found Ambeau guilty on both counts and later sentenced Ambeau to fifty years for the armed robbery conviction and twenty-five years for the attempted armed robbery conviction.

Ambeau appeals his sentence as excessive and seeks to have a minute entry corrected. Further, in a pro se assignment of error, Ambeau asserts that his conviction should be overturned due to insufficient evidence. We find no error in [218]*218the trial court’s sentence imposition and affirm the defendant’s convictions and sentences. We remand this matter to the trial court for amendment of the minute entry to reflect that defendant’s two sentences are to run concurrently.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On March 6,1992, the State of Louisiana charged Ambeau by bill of information with one count of violating La. R.S. 14:64, armed robbery, and one count of violating La. R.S. 14(27)64, attempted armed robbery. Ambeau appeared |2before the trial court for arraignment and pled not guilty to both charges. Thereafter, the trial court heard Defendant’s motion to suppress and conducted a preliminary hearing. At the close of the hearings the trial court denied defendant’s motion and found sufficient probable cause to substantiate the charges brought against him by the State.

The State brought its case against Am-beau to trial, and Ambeau waived the jury and elected to have his ease tried before the trial judge. The State introduced two exhibits and presented testimony from three individuals. After the close of evidence, the trial judge found Ambeau guilty on both counts. On May 14, 1992, the trial court sentenced Ambeau, to fifty years for the armed robbery conviction and twenty-five years for the attempted armed robbery conviction. The sentences were to run concurrently and both were at hard labor without benefit of probation, parole, or suspension of sentence.

On September 11, 1992, the trial court adjudicated defendant a third-time felony offender as to the armed robbery conviction only. Ambeau was then resentenced to serve sixty-six and two-thirds years at hard labor without benefit of parole. The minute entries for May 14, 1992 and September 11, 1992 are largely illegible. However, examination of the September 11, 1992 entry shows that it contains information not included in the docket master summary. Accordingly, it cannot be ascertained from the record whether Am-beau’s counsel made any objections to the State’s evidence or to the trial court’s sentence. Nevertheless, the record contains no written response to the multiple bill as required by La. R.S. 15:529.1(D)(l)(b).

Neither the record nor any of the legible minute entries, indicate that Ambeau moved for an appeal. Ambeau contends that he moved for an out-of-time |sappeal, the appointment of new counsel and for the production of trial documents on July 24, 1994. Nevertheless, the record is devoid of this purported motion. On September 1, 1994, Ambeau filed a writ of mandamus (writ 94-K-1744) with this Court complaining that the trial court failed to rule on his motions. On November 10, 1994, this Court transferred defendant’s motion to the trial court for consideration within thirty days of the order. In connection with writ 95-K-0823, this Court issued a second order reiterating the order issued in connection with writ 94-K-1744. On August 17,1995, the trial court granted Ambeau’s motion for an out-of-time appeal. However, this Court never received notice of Ambeau’s appeal.

In writ 2001-K-1677, Ambeau sought to have the trial court’s judgment granting his out-of-time appeal enforced. He also sought to dismiss his retained counsel and have new counsel appointed. The docket master reflects that on April 28, 1997, the trial court allowed Ambeau’s retained counsel to voluntarily withdraw from the case. However, prior to withdrawing, Am-beau’s counsel filed an application for post-conviction relief. Because the record had not been made available for review, the claims raised by Ambeau’s counsel were [219]*219unknown. Therefore, it was possible that Ambeau had since waived his right to an appeal. In light of these circumstances, the writ was granted and the trial court was ordered to enforce its judgment unless it specifically found that Ambeau waived his right to an appeal. If it found that Ambeau had not waived his right to an appeal, the district court was ordered to appoint counsel and file a notice of appeal in this court within sixty days of the order. Alternatively, if it found that Ambeau had waived his right to an appeal, the trial court was ordered to file a minute entry in this Court within sixty days of the order reflecting its findings.

|4In writ 2004-K-1744, Ambeau asserted that the trial court failed to comply with this Court’s prior orders. The writ was granted and the trial court was ordered to enforce its judgment unless it specifically found that Ambeau waived his right to an appeal. If it found that Ambeau had not waived his right to an appeal, the district court was ordered to appoint counsel, and this Court ordered that a notice of appeal be filed within thirty days of the order. Alternatively, if it found that Ambeau had waived his right to an appeal, the trial court was ordered to file a minute entry reflecting its findings in this Court within thirty days of the order.

Ambeau’s filed a notice of appeal in the trial court on January 20, 2005. The record was lodged in this Court on May 10, 2005. On May 2, 2005, the trial court wrote a letter to this Court wherein it stated that the transcript from Ambeau’s May 14, 1992 multiple offender hearing could not be located. Specifically, the trial court’s letter stated that the pertinent court reporter could find no notes or transcripts for the May 14, 1992 hearing. Am-beau filed his brief on August 16, 2005. On February 14, 2006, this Court vacated Ambeau’s multiple offender conviction and sentence based upon the fact that the transcript from the defendant’s multiple offender hearing could not be located and the relevant minute entries were illegible. State v. Ambeau, 2005-0711 (La.App. 4 Cir. 2/15/06), 930 So.2d 54. Accordingly, this Court remanded Ambeau’s ease to the tidal court for another multiple offender hearing.

The record indicates that on remand the trial court held another multiple bill hearing on March 23, 2007. At the hearing, the trial court quashed the multiple bill on the grounds that more than one year had passed since this Court remanded the matter to the trial court for another multiple bill hearing. On June 18, 2007, the defendant appeared before the trial court for resentencing on his original ^convictions. The record reflects that prior to resentenc-ing, the trial judge recounted this matter’s procedural history; the trial judge stated several times that he remembered the case. The trial court then re-imposed a fifty-year sentence on the defendant for his conviction with respect to the armed robbery charge. Further, while the trial judge opined that he did not think that Ambeau needed to be resentenced with respect to the attempted armed robbery charge, the trial court reimposed the twenty-five year sentence.

The record shows that Ambeau was convicted for crimes involving two victims. The first victim to testify, Lisa Ford (hereinafter “Ms.

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Bluebook (online)
6 So. 3d 215, 2008 La.App. 4 Cir. 1191, 2009 La. App. LEXIS 218, 2009 WL 368247, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-ambeau-lactapp-2009.