State v. Coleman

142 So. 3d 130, 13 La.App. 5 Cir. 942, 2014 WL 1923234, 2014 La. App. LEXIS 1276
Louisiana Court of Appeal·Decided May 14, 2014·No. No. 13-KA-942·Published·Cited by 6 cases

Opinion

HANS J. LILJEBERG, Judge.

12Defendant appeals his convictions and sentences for violations of La. R.S. §§ 14:27:30.1 and 14:30.1. We affirm.

Procedural History

On June 14, 2012, a Jefferson Parish Grand Jury returned an indictment charging defendant, Charles Coleman, with attempted second degree murder in violation of La. R.S. 14:27:30.1 (count one), second degree murder in violation of La. R.S. 14:30.1 (count two), and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in violation of La. R.S. 14:95.1 (count three). On June 15, 2012, defendant pleaded not guilty to all charges.

On June 10, 2013, the trial court heard and denied defendant’s motion to sever counts, motion to quash based on prescription, motion to quash the indictment as constitutionally deficient, motion to declare Art. 782(A) unconstitutional, motion for continuance, and objection to State’s Pri-eur notice. |sThe court granted defendant’s motion to declare La. R.S. 14:95.1 unconstitutional and granted a defense motion in limine.

On June 11, 2013, defendant proceeded to trial on the remaining charges of attempted second degree murder and second degree murder; and on June 12, 2013, a 12-person jury found defendant guilty as charged on both counts.

On August 9, 2013, the trial court sentenced defendant, on count one, to ten years imprisonment at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. On count two, the court sentenced defendant to life imprisonment at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence.

That same day, defendant filed a motion to reconsider sentence and a motion for appeal. On August 12, 2013, the trial court denied the motion to reconsider sentence and granted defendant’s motion for appeal.

Facts

Kevin Adams, a victim in this case, was acquainted with defendant from “the neighborhood” and in May 2007, frequently sold him drugs. One such instance occurred on May 7, 2007, when Mr. Adams [133]*133met defendant three times to sell him crack cocaine. At their third meeting, at approximately 11:00 a.m., Mr. Adams met defendant in an abandoned house on Mather Drive in the Lincolnshire subdivision in Marrero, across the street from defendant’s house. During this transaction, defendant brandished a gun and pointed it at Mr. Adams. Mr. Adams threw his cell phone at defendant, striking him in the face. Defendant managed to discharge his weapon five times, striking Mr. Adams once in the collar bone and four times in his right side. The two men then fled the house. Mr. Adams sought help from neighbors who called the police.

LDetective Kevin Tillman of the Jefferson Parish Sheriffs Office was dispatched to the scene. As he neared the location, he observed Mr. Adams covered in blood. He quickly exited his vehicle to render assistance and called for EMS. Mr. Adams told the detective: “Bird shot me.”1 EMS arrived shortly thereafter and transported Mr. Adams to the hospital where he underwent surgery.2

Around noon, Lieutenant Kevin Decker and Detective Willie Jones of the Jefferson Parish Sheriffs Office responded to the scene where Detective Tillman encountered Mr. Adams. From this location, the officers followed a trail of blood into a nearby abandoned residence. Inside, they recovered two cartridge casings and a cell phone.

Later that same day, Ayesha Carter, a self-proclaimed rehabilitated drug addict, left work early and headed home. On her way home, she stopped in the Woodmere subdivision in Harvey to see Marlon Turner, a childhood friend, drug dealer, and the second victim in this case. Ms. Carter planned to smoke marijuana with him. When she arrived, Mr. Turner sat in the passenger seat of her vehicle and they smoked. While sitting there, Mr. Turner received several phone calls, to which he responded: “I’m coming. I need a moment. I’m getting my car washed. Give me a minute, I’ll be there.” Mr. Turner then asked Ms. Carter if she could give him a ride to meet a “dude.” She agreed, and as they made their way, Mr. Turner received several more phone calls, to one of which he responded: “I’m on my way.” To another, he stated: “I’m not in my car. I’m in a little black box.”3 However, when they arrived at the location, there was no one there. Mr. Turner was then directed to another location. As they proceeded to that location, Ms. | ^Carter asked if Mr. Turner knew this person, to which he responded, “Yes. That’s nobody but Bird.” When they arrived at the second location, Ms. Carter stopped the vehicle as defendant approached. He entered the vehicle and sat in the rear passenger seat.

Ms. Carter, preferring not to have a drug deal take place in her vehicle, told Mr. Turner to hurry up and do what he needed to do. Defendant offered to move to his vehicle, but Mr. Turner replied that they were okay where they were. Waiting for the two men to finish the transaction, Ms. Carter turned around to see defendant patting himself down, looking for what she assumed was money.

Mr. Turner then retrieved from his pocket what appeared to be a bag of crack cocaine and asked Ms. Carter for a ciga[134]*134rette. Within moments, Ms. Carter heard a “pop” and her vehicle “lit up with fire,” prompting her to jump out, screaming, “Lord, please don’t kill me.” As she fled, she heard another shot a few seconds later. She made it to a nearby friend’s house, where she called the police. Mr. Turner died at the scene.

Around 2:45 p.m., Sergeant Eddie Klein of the Jefferson Parish Sheriffs Office responded to the scene in Woodmere near the intersection of Inwood Drive and Des-trehan Avenue, near Mather Drive, the street of the abandoned residence where Mr. Adams was shot earlier. Two .380 caliber casings and a cell phone were recovered on the scene. The cell phone and one of the casings were located in the rear seat of the vehicle. The other casing was located in the street next to the vehicle.

The police determined that the cell phone belonged to defendant. This phone was compared with the cell phone recovered from the abandoned residence on Mather Drive. A review of the phones’ call logs revealed that this phone received a call from defendant’s phone.

| nLater that day, Ms. Carter identified defendant from a photographic lineup as the man who shot Marlon Turner. At trial, she acknowledged that she did not see the discharge of a gun, but avowed she is “absolutely certain” that defendant shot and killed Turner.

Warrants for defendant’s arrest were subsequently issued relating to the shootings of Kevin Adams and Marlon Turner. Pursuant to a tip, Detective Michael Hamilton and several other officers of the New Orleans Police Department located defendant in a New Orleans residence in possession of a loaded .40 caliber handgun. He was placed under arrest and read his Miranda4 rights, which he indicated he understood, and was then transported to the detective bureau.

There, Sergeant Jeffrey Rodrigue and Detective Jason Barrett of the Jefferson Parish Sheriffs Office interviewed defendant. With a rights of arrestee form, defendant was again advised of his rights, indicated he understood them, waived them, and “provided two recorded statements.

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State v. Coleman, 142 So. 3d 130, 13 La.App. 5 Cir. 942, 2014 WL 1923234, 2014 La. App. LEXIS 1276 (La. Ct. App. 2014).

142 So. 3d 130 (State v. Coleman) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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