State v. Clark

780 So. 2d 418, 2000 WL 1809973
Louisiana Court of Appeal·Decided December 6, 2000·No. 00-818·Published·Cited by 3 cases

Opinion

780 So.2d 418 (2000)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Wilfred Wayne CLARK.

No. 00-818.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

December 6, 2000.
Rehearing Denied March 9, 2001.

*419 Earl B. Taylor, District Attorney, Opelousas, LA, Counsel for Appellee.

Lawrence Charles Billeaud, Lafayette, LA, Counsel for Appellant/Defendant.

Court composed of Judge COOKS, Judge AMY and Judge PICKETT.

AMY, Judge.

The defendant was tried and convicted for attempted simple robbery. The State filed a habitual offender bill of information against the defendant, charging him as a third felony offender. The trial court sentenced the defendant to life imprisonment, without parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. The defendant appeals his conviction and sentence. We affirm.

Factual and Procedural Background

On September 25, 1998, John Savoy, a pizza deliveryman, encountered the defendant while he was attempting to deliver a pizza in Opelousas, Louisiana. Mr. Savoy stated that while he was searching for the correct address of his current delivery, he saw the defendant flagging him down from the side of the street. Mr. Savoy, believing that the defendant may be the individual who ordered the pizza, drove his car alongside the defendant and stopped. At that time, Mr. Savoy explained, the defendant jumped into the front passenger side of his car and demanded all of his money. Mr. Savoy, who testified that he was surprised, scared, intimidated, and thought the defendant would try to hurt him, responded by hitting the defendant in the face with his hand and, then, reached underneath his seat as if he had a gun. The defendant jumped out of the car and began running. Mr. Savoy drove to the police station to report the incident. The defendant was later found in the general vicinity of where Mr. Savoy had reported the incident occurred. Officer Kenneth Edwards *420 testified that he brought the defendant to the police station where Mr. Savoy identified him as the man who entered his car and asked for his money. Officer Tyrone Davis testified that he later interviewed the defendant and questioned him about the incident. Officer Davis stated that the defendant denied demanding money from Mr. Savoy and claimed that he was only trying to get a ride.

On January 25, 1999, the State filed a bill of information charging the defendant, Wilfred Wayne Clark, with attempted simple robbery, a violation of La.R.S. 14:27 and La.R.S. 14:65, to which the defendant pled not guilty. A jury trial was conducted on July 15, 1999. A six-member jury found the defendant guilty as charged. On August 11, 1999, the State filed a habitual offender bill of information against the defendant, charging him as a third felony offender pursuant to La.R.S. 15:529.1(A)(1)(b)(ii). The trial court determined that the State had proved the requisites for the habitual offender bill of information, and sentenced the defendant to life imprisonment, without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. The defendant appealed his sentence and conviction.

Discussion of the Merits

In accordance with La.Code Crim.P. art. 920, all appeals are reviewed for errors patent on the face of the record. After review, we find two such errors. First, we recognize that the trial court erroneously informed the defendant that he had three years to file post-conviction relief. According to La.Code Crim.P. art. 930.8, effective August 15, 1999, a defendant has two years from the date the judgment of conviction and sentence becomes final to file post-conviction relief. Therefore, we will remand this matter with instructions to the trial court to inform the defendant of the two-year prescriptive period by sending appropriate written notice to the defendant within ten days of the rendition of this opinion and to file written proof that the defendant received the notice in the record of the proceedings. State v. Fontenot, 616 So.2d 1353 (La.App. 3 Cir.), writ denied, 623 So.2d 1334 (La. 1993).

Secondly, the transcript from the sentencing hearing reflects that the trial court ordered that the defendant not be allowed "diminution of sentence for good behavior pursuant to La.R.S. 15:571.3." The supreme court has held that "a trial court lacks authority under La.R.S. 15:571.3(C) to deny a defendant eligibility for good time credits against his sentence, because the statute is `directed to the Department of Corrections exclusively.'" State v. Narcisse, 97 3161 (La.6/26/98); 714 So.2d 698, quoting, State ex rel. Simmons v. Stadler, 93-1852, (La.1/26/96); 666 So.2d 661. Thus, we order that the minutes of the sentencing hearing be amended to delete the portion of the trial court's sentence regarding "diminution of sentence for good behavior pursuant to La. R.S. 15:571.3."

Insufficiency of Evidence

The defendant alleges that the evidence presented at trial was insufficient to prove that he committed an act of force or intimidation upon the alleged victim. He alleges that the testimony of the victim, alone, is insufficient to prove this essential element of simple robbery. Thus, the defendant argues, the State was unable to exclude a reasonable possibility that he was just trying to get a ride or that he committed the lesser crime of theft.

When a defendant raises the issue of insufficiency of evidence on appeal, the reviewing court must determine that the evidence, whether direct or circumstantial, or a mixture of both, viewed in the light most favorable to the prosecution, was sufficient to prove to a rational trier of fact that each of the necessary elements of the crime charged have been proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979); State v. Tilley, 99-569 (La.7/6/00); *421 767 So.2d 6; State v. Captville, 448 So.2d 676 (La.1984). Simple robbery is defined in La.R.S. 14:65 as "the taking of anything of value belonging to another from the person of another or that is in the immediate control of another, by use of force or intimidation, but not armed with a dangerous weapon." Thus, the necessary elements needed to be proved by the State to sustain a conviction of simple robbery are: 1) the taking of anything of value; 2) belonging to another; 3) from the person of another or their immediate control; 4) by use of force or violence. A person "attempts" to commit the crime of simple robbery when he has the specific intent to commit the offense and does or omits an act for the purpose of and tending directly toward accomplishing his object. La.R.S. 14:27.

The victim, Mr. Savoy, testified for the State regarding the events that occurred on the night of the alleged attempted simple robbery. Mr. Savoy explained that the defendant signaled for him to stop his car, he pulled his vehicle alongside the defendant, the defendant jumped into the front passenger side of his vehicle, and demanded his money. Mr. Savoy testified that he was surprised, scared, intimidated, and believed the defendant would try to hurt him in order to get his money. When questioned by the defendant's trial counsel, Mr. Savoy denied that the defendant ever asked for a ride. The only evidence presented that may seem to have contradicted Mr. Savoy's version of the incident was Officer Davis' testimony explaining that the defendant had told him during an interview at the police station that he did not demand money from Mr. Savoy and that he was only trying to get a ride.

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State v. Clark, 780 So. 2d 418, 2000 WL 1809973 (La. Ct. App. 2000).

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