State v. Fields

732 So. 2d 562, 98 La.App. 5 Cir. 935, 1999 La. App. LEXIS 564, 1999 WL 126560
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMarch 10, 1999
DocketNo. 98-KA-935
StatusPublished

This text of 732 So. 2d 562 (State v. Fields) 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. Fields, 732 So. 2d 562, 98 La.App. 5 Cir. 935, 1999 La. App. LEXIS 564, 1999 WL 126560 (La. Ct. App. 1999).

Opinions

CANNELLA, Judge.

Defendant, Leroyal Fields, appeals from his convictions of three counts of possession of stolen property, valued between $100 and $500, and his sentence on each count to 2 years imprisonment at hard labor to run concurrently. For the reasons which follow, we affirm the convictions, enhanced sentences and remand.

PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On September 12, 1995, defendant was charged by bill of information with 4 counts of illegal possession of stolen things valued at over $500, a violation of La. R.S. 14:69. Defendant was arraigned on October 25; 1995 and pled not guilty. On May 19, 1997, following a bench trial, the trial judge found defendant not guilty on Count 1 and guilty of the lesser offense of illegal possession of stolen things valued at between $100 and $500 on Counts 2, 3 and 4.

On June 11, 1997, defendant filed a motion for new trial which was | ^denied, following a hearing on July 2, 1997. On July 17, 1997, the trial judge imposed a sentence of 2 years imprisonment at hard [563]*563labor on each count, with the sentences to run concurrently.

Meanwhile, on May 22, 1997, the State fled an habitual offender bill of information against the defendant, alleging that he was a second felony offender. On July 17, 1997, following the imposition of the original sentences, defendant executed a waiver of rights form and admitted being a second felony offender. After advising defendant of his rights, the trial judge found defendant to be a second offender, vacated his original sentence in Count 3 and sentenced defendant to 2 years imprisonment at hard labor, with all sentences to run concurrently. Then, the trial court vacated the sentences in Counts 2, 3 and 4. Next, the trial court sentenced the defendant to 2 years imprisonment at hard labor each on Counts 2, 3 and 4, to be served concurrently. Defendant made an oral motion for appeal and filed a written motion on January 15,1998.

FACTS

The defendant was charged with illegal possession of 4 stolen cars belonging to Denise Starwood (Starwood), Loretta Weitsen (Weitsen), Mohammad Jabor (Ja-bor) and Assia Menne (Menne).

At trial, Menne testified that in July of 1995 she resided in the Forest Park apartments. She testified that on July 10, 1995, her mother telephoned her at work to tell her that her 1977 Cutlass was missing from her apartment complex. Menne called the police and reported the vehicle stolen. She testified that a police officer advised her to check with the complex manager to make sure that it had not been towed at their request. Menne testified that, after speaking to the manager, she did not believe that her car had been towed at the request of the | ¿apartment complex. The manager gave her the defendant’s phone number, however, because he was the person who usually towed vehicles from the apartment. Several weeks later, Menne located the defendant at his salvage yard in Bridge City. She told the defendant that she was in the market for a passenger’s side door for a 1977 Cutlass. Menne testified that the' defendant brought her to her own car and" offered to sell the door for “maybe $60.00.” Menne testified that she left the salvage yard, called the police and denied giving the defendant permission to possess her car. At trial, Menne identified the defendant as the man who attempted to sell her a door from her own car.

Weitsen testified that in May of 1995, she was using her father’s Toyota Camry. She testified that during that month she was staying, with her sister because her apartment and car had been damaged during a flood. Weitsen testified that one evening in May of 1995, the car was stolen from the front of her sister’s house. She reported the incident to the police, who subsequently notified her that the car had been found. Weitsen testified that at the time the car was stolen, it was in good condition, but when it was recovered, the car was missing tires and a door. She testified that she gave no one permission to take the car.

' Jabar testified that on December 8, 1994, his Oldsmobile 98 was stolen from the front of his business, Quick Check Food Store, in Chalmette. He testified that in August of 1995, he was notified by the police that his vehiclé had been recovered in a salvage yard. Jabar denied giving anyone permission to take his vehicle. Jabar identified the state’s exhibits 8 and 9 as photographs of his vehicle showing that the hood of the vehicle had been removed along with several other parts.

Starwood testified that in July of 1995, her 1984 Buick Regal was stolen | ¡Jrom the front of her house. She testified that she reported the theft to the police. Two weeks later, the police contacted her and informed her that her car had been found at a salvage yard. - She testified that she went to the salvage yard to retrieve her car and spoke to a man who told her that “Leroyal Fields owned that portion of the property.” Starwood stated that subse[564]*564quently, defendant’s daughter, Djuna Fields (Djuna), came to her home and told her that her brother, Leroy Fields, Jr. (Leroy, Jr.), not her father, had stolen the car. Starwood further testified that she also spoke to defendant in person and that he told her that his son had stolen the car, and offered to purchase another one for her. She testified that the defendant did not, however, fulfill his promise. Star-wood identified the defendant in court as the man with whom she had spoken, and identified state’s exhibits 10 through 14 as photographs of her car that depict it in a “demolished” and “stripped” condition. These photographs show that many of the car’s parts have been removed, including the passenger’s side door, the seats and the rear bumper.

Lieutenant Glenn Toca testified that he investigated Menne’s report of discovering her car at the defendant’s salvage yard. He testified that on August 14, 1995, he and several officers went to the salvage yard and discovered Menne’s car, as well as three more vehicles that had been reported stolen. These were the vehicles belonging to Starwood, Weitsen and Jabar. Lieutenant Toca testified that the defendant was not present when they arrived on the lot, but was arrested several days later pursuant to an arrest warrant. Lieutenant Toca testified that on August 18, 1995, he advised the defendant of his Miranda rights, and he and the defendant went to the salvage yard. There, the defendant showed him the boundaries of his salvage yard. Lieutenant Toca testified that the | (¡recovered vehicles were found within the boundaries pointed out by defendant. Lieutenant Toca further testified that the defendant told him that “the vehicles just showed up on his lot” and that “he would sell parts off of the vehicles.” The defendant also told Lieutenant Toca that he had towed Menne’s vehicle to his lot at the request of the apartment manager. Finally, Lieutenant Toca testified that, based upon the information he had received from the victims, the defendant was “booked” with theft in excess of $500.

The defendant presented the testimony of several witnesses. John Early (Early) testified that he had occupied a lot on the right side of the defendant’s salvage yard. He stated that the defendant had purchased an 18-wheeler flatbed truck from him and occasionally did some work for him. Early testified that people “dropped cars” in the adjoining vacant lot, that he saw defendant’s son on the adjoining vacant, but that he had not seen the defendant there.

Wilfred Olinde (Olinde) testified that was the landlord of the lot on which the defendant operated his salvage yard.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
732 So. 2d 562, 98 La.App. 5 Cir. 935, 1999 La. App. LEXIS 564, 1999 WL 126560, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-fields-lactapp-1999.