State v. EJF

999 So. 2d 224, 2008 WL 5159071
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedDecember 10, 2008
Docket08-674
StatusPublished

This text of 999 So. 2d 224 (State v. EJF) 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. EJF, 999 So. 2d 224, 2008 WL 5159071 (La. Ct. App. 2008).

Opinion

999 So.2d 224 (2008)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
E.J.F.

No. 08-674.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

December 10, 2008.

*226 David W. Burton, District Attorney, Richard A. Morton, Assistant District Attorney, DeRidder, LA. for Appellee, State of Louisiana.

W. Jarred Franklin, Louisiana Appellate Project, Bossier City, LA, for Defendant/Appellant, E.J.F.

Court composed of JIMMIE C. PETERS, MARC T. AMY and JAMES T. GENOVESE, Judges.

AMY, Judge.

A jury found the defendant guilty of three counts of aggravated incest, in violation of La.R.S. 14:78.1. He was sentenced to serve fifteen years on each count, to run concurrently with each other but consecutively to a federal sentence that he is currently serving pursuant to a conviction for possession of child pornography. The defendant appeals, alleging insufficiency of evidence, error by the trial court in allowing other crimes evidence to be admitted at trial, error by the trial court in denying his motion to suppress, and an excessive sentence claim. For the following reasons, we affirm.

Factual and Procedural Background

The State alleged that the defendant, E.J.F.,[1] committed three counts of aggravated incest, in violation of La.R.S. 14:78.1, when the defendant allegedly engaged in acts of sexual battery against A.N.H., insomuch *227 as the victim was under the age of eighteen and was related to the defendant as his biological granddaughter. Specifically, the defendant was born on April 26, 1955, while the victim was born on April 14, 1997. The State alleged that the first incident of fondling occurred on or about May 1, 2005, and the second violation occurred on or about December 10, 2005. Finally, the third charge related to an alleged act perpetrated on December 19, 2005. The record establishes that A.N.H.'s mother is the biological daughter of the defendant.

According to testimony at trial, the defendant's daughter, A.B., took her three children to visit their grandfather, the defendant, in a FEMA trailer in which he was residing. According to the victim, she, along with her brother and sister, watched a movie and, with their mother's consent, spent the night with their grandfather. Her testimony reveals that her brother, C.F., and her sister, B.F., slept in bunk beds, while she retired to the couch in the living room to sleep for the night. The State alleges that the defendant sat on the couch with her, where he rubbed her breasts and touched her vagina. According to both the victim and her brother, the defendant then got up and chastised C.F. for making noise and opening the curtain that separated the rooms. Upon returning, the defendant allegedly exposed himself and asked the victim to touch his penis. She refused. According to A.N.H.'s mother's testimony regarding what her daughter told her about that night, A.N.H. subsequently put her head underneath the covers. When it became apparent that the victim would not comply with the defendant's request, he went to his bedroom, where he remained for the rest of the night.

According to the victim's mother, A.B., her son, C.F., told her the next day that he had gotten into trouble the previous night for peeking around the curtain. As testified to at trial, this prompted A.B. to ask the victim if something had happened. A.B. stated at trial that A.N.H. began to shake when she told her mother the sequence of events that transpired at the defendant's house. After A.B. was made aware of the allegations, she called the sheriff's office to report the alleged misconduct.

According to Detective Bebee's testimony, the victim gave a video statement at the sheriff's office the following day. In this recorded statement, the victim indicated that the most recent incident did not represent the first time the defendant inappropriately touched her. She recounted one incident wherein the defendant was spending the night at her house. She sat on his lap underneath a blanket, while her parents were in another room. The defendant allegedly put his hands down her pants, touching her vagina. In this video statement, the victim also recalls a separate incident in which the defendant was holding the victim on his lap while sitting on the couch with A.B. and the victim's sister. The children were looking at magazines and reviewing their Christmas lists. The victim and the defendant were covered by a blanket, and the defendant allegedly fondled the victim's vagina underneath her clothes. As set forth in the video, the victim recalled that the defendant inappropriately touched her and put her hand on his penis on several other occasions, but she could not remember the details surrounding those times. We note that the victim testified to the veracity of the video-taped statement at trial.

Ultimately, the State charged the defendant with three counts of aggravated incest. After a jury found him guilty as charged, he was sentenced to serve fifteen years at hard labor on each count. The *228 sentences were ordered to run concurrently with each other but consecutive to the federal sentence imposed for possession of child pornography, with full credit for time served. The defendant filed a motion to reconsider sentence, which was denied. The defendant appeals.

He asserts the following assignments of error:

1) There is insufficient evidence to prove the guilt of Defendant beyond a reasonable doubt for the offenses of Aggravated Incest.
2) The Trial Court erred by allowing other crimes evidence to be admitted at trial.
3) The Trial Court erred in denying the Defendant's Motion to Suppress.
4) The sentences imposed are excessive for this offender and these offenses.

Discussion

Sufficiency of the Evidence

"When issues are raised on appeal both as to the sufficiency of the evidence and as to one or more trial errors, the reviewing court should first determine the sufficiency of the evidence." State v. Hearold, 603 So.2d 731, 734 (La.1992). The defendant argues that "[t]he only evidence produced at trial was with respect to a December 19, 2005 occurrence." He contends that the State put forth no evidence regarding the particular location and dates of the alleged acts. Concerning the incident on December 19, the defendant urges that the State did not produce objective evidence to prove that he committed a sexual battery, such as a medical examination of the victim, results of said exam, or expert testimony.

The analysis of an insufficient evidence claim is well-settled:

When the issue of sufficiency of evidence is raised on appeal, the critical inquiry of the reviewing court is whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979); State ex rel. Graffagnino v. King, 436 So.2d 559 (La.1983); State v. Duncan, 420 So.2d 1105 (La.1982); State v. Moody, 393 So.2d 1212 (La. 1981). It is the role of the fact finder to weigh the respective credibility of the witnesses. Therefore, the appellate court should not second-guess the credibility determination of the trier of fact beyond the sufficiency evaluations under the Jackson standard of review. See King, 436 So.2d 559, citing State v. Richardson, 425 So.2d 1228 (La.1983).

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443 U.S. 307 (Supreme Court, 1979)
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State v. Etienne
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State v. Lambert
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State v. Moody
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State v. Mayeux
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State v. Mims
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Bluebook (online)
999 So. 2d 224, 2008 WL 5159071, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-ejf-lactapp-2008.