State v. Frierson

302 So. 2d 605
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana
DecidedOctober 11, 1974
Docket54825
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 302 So. 2d 605 (State v. Frierson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Frierson, 302 So. 2d 605 (La. 1974).

Opinion

302 So.2d 605 (1974)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Henry L. FRIERSON and James O. Raphiel.

No. 54825.

Supreme Court of Louisiana.

October 11, 1974.
Rehearing Denied November 6, 1974.

*606 S. Frank Harlow, Jack D. Barnett, Shreveport, for defendants-appellants.

William J. Guste, Jr., Atty. Gen., Barbara Rutledge, Asst. Atty. Gen., John A. Richardson, Dist. Atty., Lawrence M. Johnson, Asst. Dist. Atty., for plaintiff-appellee.

MARCUS, Justice.

Defendants, Henry L. Frierson and James O. Raphiel, were charged with the armed robbery of Jerry Fulghum at the Pak-A-Sak Store in Shreveport on November 11, 1971. They were jointly tried and found guilty by a jury. Each defendant was sentenced to serve thirty years at hard *607 labor. On appeal, defendants rely upon six bills of exceptions to obtain a reversal of their conviction and sentence.

BILL OF EXCEPTIONS NO. 1

On the morning of the trial, January 8, 1973, defendants objected to trial on that day, a legal holiday, known as the Battle of New Orleans. When the court overruled their objection, Bill of Exceptions No. 1 was reserved. Article 763 of the Code of Criminal Procedure provides: "Trials and hearings may commence or continue on a holiday or half-holiday in the discretion of the court." It is argued by defendants that the order by the trial court for the commencement of trial on this legal holiday "violates the spirit of its legislative discretion." There is no allegation that the judge abused his discretion or that the defendants were in any way prejudiced by the ruling. State v. Lewis, 255 La. 623, 232 So.2d 294 (1970).[1] Furthermore, the trial date for January 8, 1973 was set on December 6, 1972. Complaint was not made until just before the trial was to begin.

This bill has no merit.

BILL OF EXCEPTIONS NO. 2

Immediately after the jurors were sworn, selected and impaneled, the district attorney filed notice of intent to use statements made by defendants. At this point in time, defense counsel orally sought a severance on the ground that the statement of one of the defendants might incriminate the other, citing Bruton v. United States.[2] No further factual basis for the motion is to be found in the record. The court took a short recess to consider the matter, returned, and then denied the motion. Bill of Exceptions No. 2 was reserved to this ruling.

Severance at trial is provided for in Article 704 C.Cr.P. as follows:

"Jointly indicted defendants shall be tried jointly unless:

"(1) The state elects to try them separately; or

"(2) The court, on motion of the defendant, and after contradictory hearing with the district attorney, is satisfied that justice requires a severance."

Severance is not a matter of right. The granting or refusal of a motion for severance is within the sound discretion of the trial judge, whose ruling will be disturbed on appeal only if there is a clear abuse of that discretion. State v. Shaffer, 260 La. 605, 257 So.2d 121 (1971). This Court has repeatedly held that it is not a sufficient showing to merely allege in general terms that the defenses are antagonistic. Rather, the motion for severance must be determined on the stated facts in the motion or as otherwise shown at the time the motion is passed upon to enable the trial judge to ascertain whether the antagonism is such as to necessitate separate trials. State v. Ross, 263 La. 271, 268 So.2d 222 (1972); State v. Bonner, 252 La. 200, 210 So.2d 319 (1968); State v. Progue, 243 La. 337, 144 So.2d 352 (1962); State v. Wittmers, 167 La. 379, 119 So. 263 (1928), and State v. Birbiglia, 149 La. 4, 88 So. 533 (1921).

It is the State's position that no error was committed in this ruling for the reason that the notice of intention to use inculpatory statements was given out of an abundance of caution. The State was of the view that the testimony of Detective *608 Nichols with reference to defendant Frierson's admission that he owned a yellow Mustang (the description of the car used in the robbery) might possibly be considered an inculpatory statement. The only evidence offered at trial was the testimony of this detective that Frierson admitted to him that the yellow 1965 Mustang automobile belonged to Frierson. This is the only statement of an inculpatory nature (if such it was) that was used at trial, and it in no way implicated the co-defendant Raphiel.

In Bruton, the United States Supreme Court held that the admission of a co-defendant's confession implicating defendant at joint trial where said co-defendant did not testify and could not be tested by cross-examination violated the defendant's right of cross-examination secured by the Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment. No such situation exists in the present case.

There was no showing at the time this motion was filed in what manner a severance was warranted. The simple assertion that statements would be introduced is not sufficient. Furthermore, no inculpatory statement of either defendant was introduced at trial. This being the case, there is no error in the ruling. State v. Faciane, 233 La. 1028, 99 So.2d 333 (1958).

In brief filed in this Court, defendants state that, as the trial developed, neither defendant dared to take the witness stand because their respective defenses were possibly conflicting, contradictory and/or antagonistic. Again, no factual basis is given for this assertion nor is it indicated how the defenses were antagonistic as developed at trial.

It is significant to note that counsel did not request a hearing on the motion for severance nor did he offer any proof in support thereof.

Under such circumstances, it cannot be said that the refusal of the motion for a severance was an abuse of the discretion vested in the trial court under Article 704 C.Cr.P.

Bill of Exceptions No. 2 lacks merit.

BILL OF EXCEPTIONS NO. 3

This bill was reserved when the trial court ordered a female prospective juror (Mrs. Charley Hicks) excused because she had not met the filing requirements of Article 402 C.Cr.P. The bill is an attack upon the provisions of our law contained in Article VII, Section 41 of the Louisiana Constitution and Article 402 of the Code of Criminal Procedure pertaining to the service of women on juries. Due process and equal protection rights of these defendants are claimed to be violated by these provisions, and it is urged that they are unconstitutional.

This Court has consistently upheld our constitutional and statutory law exempting women from jury service as not violative of the due process and equal protection clauses. State v. Washington, 292 So.2d 234 (La.1974); State v. Brown, 288 So.2d 339 (La.1974); State v. Jack, 285 So.2d 204 (La. 1973). We adhere to this holding. Exemption of women from jury service has been upheld by the United States Supreme Court in Hoyt v. Florida, 368 U.S. 57, 82 S.Ct. 159, 7 L.Ed.2d 118 (1961). We note the recent decision of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana in Healy v. Edwards, 363 F.Supp. 1110 (1973) holding the Louisiana provision for women's exemption from jury service unconstitutional. However, this decision is not binding upon this Court. Hence, we will continue to follow the last authoritative expression of the United States Supreme Court in Hoyt v. Florida until that Court has again spoken on the subject.

This bill is without merit.

BILL OF EXCEPTIONS NO. 4

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State ex rel. Frierson v. Phelps
330 So. 2d 310 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1976)
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329 So. 2d 465 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1976)
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319 So. 2d 313 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1975)
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317 So. 2d 168 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1975)

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302 So. 2d 605, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-frierson-la-1974.