State v. Fugler

737 So. 2d 894, 97 La.App. 1 Cir. 1936, 1999 La. App. LEXIS 1635, 1999 WL 343317
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMay 14, 1999
DocketNo. 97 KA 1936
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 737 So. 2d 894 (State v. Fugler) 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. Fugler, 737 So. 2d 894, 97 La.App. 1 Cir. 1936, 1999 La. App. LEXIS 1635, 1999 WL 343317 (La. Ct. App. 1999).

Opinion

| .FITZSIMMONS, J.

(on rehearing).

The affirmation of the trial court conviction and sentence of Ricky Fugler is considered by this court pursuant to the grant of a rehearing. Ricky Fugler was charged by grand jury indictment with one count of attempted first degree murder, a violation of La. R.S. 14:27 and La. R.S. 14:30. He pled not guilty. After a jury trial, the defendant was found guilty as charged. He was sentenced to fifty years at hard labor. The First Circuit Court of Appeal affirmed the conviction and defendant’s sentence; however, we subsequently granted the instant rehearing. See State v. Fugler, 97-1936 (La.App. 1st Cir.9/25/98); 721 So.2d 1.

Having received and reviewed the arguments by the parties, and considering the attendant law, we now uphold the opinion originally issued by this court. On rehearing, however, that portion of the appellate opinion that addresses the issue of the Brady challenge relative to the taped statement by Su’jitra Moore is revised to read as follows:

Moore’s taped statement.

Louisiana Code of Criminal Procedure article 729.5 prescribes sanctions for failure to honor a discovery right. As pertinent here, La. Code Crim. P. art. 775 provides that a mistrial shall be ordered when prejudicial conduct in or outside the courtroom makes it impossible for the defendant to obtain a fair trial. However, a mistrial is a remedy which should be [895]*895granted only when the defendant suffers such substantial prejudice that he has been deprived of any reasonable expectation of a fair trial. Determination of whether a mistrial should be granted is within the sound discretion of the trial court, and the denial of a motion for a mistrial will not be disturbed on appeal without abuse of that discretion. State v. Berry, 95-1610, p. 7 (La.App. 1st Cir.11/8/96); 684 So.2d 439, 449; writ denied, 97-0278 (La.10/10/97); 703 So.2d 603.

In the instant case, after the State disclosed to the court that it had discovered Moore’s previously taped statement, and waived any objection to the court reviewing it for contradictions between it and Moore’s testimony at trial, the defense responded, “That’s fíne with me, Judge, ....”1 The next day the defense supplemented its grounds for a mistrial, stating that the failure to disclose the existence of Moore’s taped statement compromised its ability to confront and cross-examine the witnesses. The defense acknowledged that the court had permitted it to review a portion of the statement, particularly the portion alleged to be Brady material, concerning the defendant’s hair. |sThe State argued that if the reference to the defendant’s hair on the taped statement was Brady material, it only became so after Moore’s testimony at trial. The defense also acknowledged that it had the opportunity to, and the court had suggested that it, re-call Moore to the stand and question her about her taped statement, but did not wish to do so “for tactical and strategic reasons.” Ultimately, the court denied the motion for a mistrial, and the defense objected to the court’s ruling.

The prosecutor may not suppress evidence which is favorable to the accused and material to either guilt or punishment. Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 87, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 1196-1197, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963). Favorable evidence includes both exculpatory evidence and evidence impeaching the testimony of a witness when the reliability or credibility of that witness may be determinative of defendant’s guilt or innocence, or when it may have a direct bearing on the sentencing determination of the jury. United States v. Bagley, 473 U.S. 667, 676, 105 S.Ct. 3375, 3380, 87 L.Ed.2d 481 (1985); Giglio v. United States, 405 U.S. 150, 154, 92 S.Ct. 763, 766, 31 L.Ed.2d 104 (1972). When Brady matter is withheld, a defendant is entitled to a new trial only if the evidence is “material.” Evidence is material “if there is a reasonable probability that, had the evidence been disclosed to the defense, the result of the proceeding would have been different. A ‘reasonable probability’ is a probability sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome.” Bagley, 473 U.S. at 682, 105 S.Ct. at 3383. State v. Seals, 95-0305, pp. 14-15 (La.11/25/96); 684 So.2d 368, 378-79, cert. denied, 96-7968 (La.4/28/97); 520 U.S. 1199,117 S.Ct. 1558, 137 L.Ed.2d 705.

The court must use caution in its treatment of Brady challenges. The whole question of what is at issue in the trial of any citizen is not measured in hard and fast terms that contain legalisms. Rather the mark of our judicial system is that of “fairness.” Unfortunately, that concept, and its true significance, is becoming clouded in a plethora of “standards” that seek to define a process. Yet, it would seem that many in our profession fail to understand the ebb and flow of a case being tried before a jury. The “opportunity” to “recall” a witness to cure a “problem” due to lack of disclosure by the opposing party does not correct the irreparable damage to the momentum of the presentation of a case. Sudden, belated revelations by the prosecutor can cause the rupture and rack of the defense’s course of action, which thereby impede the very theory of the defense’s case.

[896]*896To be fair means to seek to excel in the quest to abide by the rule; it more fully inheres the intent that this concept called “fair” be honored. The implicit condonation, or apparent |4excusal, by the court of the prosecutor’s failure to comply with the Brady requirements is disturbing to that sense of fairness.

In the matter sub judice, however, it is the existence of overwhelming evidence, i.e., the compelling testimony of the actual shooting, that supercedes the impact that Moore’s reference might have had to the outcome of the trial. Thus, the conviction and sentence appear to be proper in the final analysis, based upon the specific facts in this case.

The particular evidentiary facts reveal that the State presented Officer Perry’s identification of the defendant as the shooter. Officer Perry testified that after he pursued the defendant and his truck into the Wal-Mart parking lot, he (Officer Perry) raised his “mike” to instruct the defendant on what to do next, and saw that the defendant was already out of his truck and approaching. Officer Perry, dropped his “mike” to the floor and opened his door to separate himself from the defendant. The defendant was pushed back by the door, and Officer Perry “really had a chance to look at [the defendant],” as he (Officer Perry) was about to ask the defendant to please step back to his vehicle. However, before Officer Perry could say anything, the defendant apologized, and shot him in the chest. Officer Perry fell to the ground, momentarily paralyzed. Officer Perry looked back at the defendant and saw him “fooling around with his hands.” The defendant again approached Officer Perry and shot him in his spinal cord, left leg, left foot, and right leg. Officer Perry tried to keep the defendant in view throughout the shooting because he wanted to avoid being shot in the face or the head, and he saw the defendant drive off in his truck after the shooting. Officer Perry’s vehicle’s spotlight remained on the defendant’s truck throughout the ordeal.

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Related

State v. Caples
938 So. 2d 147 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2006)
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749 So. 2d 19 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1999)

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Bluebook (online)
737 So. 2d 894, 97 La.App. 1 Cir. 1936, 1999 La. App. LEXIS 1635, 1999 WL 343317, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-fugler-lactapp-1999.