State v. Griffin

243 So. 3d 1205
Louisiana Court of Appeal·Decided September 1, 2017·No. No. 51,506–KA·Published·Cited by 3 cases

Opinion

WILLIAMS, J.

*1207The defendant, Christopher Lee Griffin, was charged by bill of information with one count of aggravated incest, a violation of La. R.S. 14:78.1. The defendant pled guilty as charged and was sentenced to serve 20 years at hard labor with a $25,000.00 fine. Defendant was subsequently adjudicated a second-felony offender and sentenced to serve 40 years at hard labor. On remand after an appeal, the district court resentenced defendant to serve a term of 40 years at hard labor, with the sentence to be served without the benefit of parole, probation or suspension of sentence. Defendant's motion to reconsider sentence was denied. Defendant appeals his sentence as excessive. For the following reasons, we amend the sentence to delete the denial of parole eligibility and affirm as amended. This matter is remanded to the trial court with instructions to provide the defendant with written notice of the sex offender registration requirements.

FACTS

The record shows that the defendant was charged with one count of aggravated incest of his 14-year-old daughter for acts occurring in June 2012. Defendant pled guilty as charged. He was adjudicated a second-felony offender and sentenced to serve 40 years at hard labor. On appeal, defendant's conviction and adjudication as a second-felony offender were affirmed. However, this court remanded for resentencing, finding that the sentencing judge should have recused himself because he had worked on the case as an assistant district attorney. State v. Griffin , 50,265 (La. App. 2 Cir. 11/18/15), 183 So.3d 585.

On remand, another judge of the district court imposed a sentence of 40 years at hard labor, to be served without the benefit of parole, probation or suspension of sentence, and denied defendant's motion to reconsider sentence. This appeal followed.

DISCUSSION

The defendant contends the trial court erred in imposing an excessive sentence. Defendant urges that the record does not support the sentence imposed.

In reviewing a claim of excessive sentence, the appellate court first considers whether the record shows the trial court took cognizance of the sentencing guidelines in La. C.Cr.P. art. 894.1. State v. Jackson , 51,011 (La. App. 2 Cir. 1/11/17), 211 So.3d 639 ; State v. Taylor , 49,467 (La. App. 2 Cir. 1/14/15), 161 So.3d 963. The trial court is not required to list every aggravating or mitigating circumstance so long as the record reflects adequate consideration of those guidelines. Id.

The reviewing court next determines whether the sentence is constitutionally excessive by considering whether the sentence is grossly out of proportion to the seriousness of the offense or nothing more than a purposeless infliction of pain and suffering. La. Const. art. I, § 20 ; State v. Dorthey , 623 So.2d 1276 (La. 1993) ; State v. Lindsey , 50,324 (La. App. 2 Cir. 2/24/16), 189 So.3d 1104. A sentence is considered grossly disproportionate if, when the crime and punishment are *1208viewed in light of the harm done to society, it shocks the sense of justice. Id.

The trial court has wide discretion in the imposition of sentences within the statutory limits and such sentences should not be set aside as excessive in the absence of a manifest abuse of that discretion. State v. Williams , 2003-3514 (La. 12/13/04), 893 So.2d 7 ; State v. Washington , 50,337 (La. App. 2 Cir. 1/13/16), 185 So.3d 852. On review, an appellate court does not determine whether another sentence may have been more appropriate, but whether the trial court abused its discretion. State v. Jackson , 48,534 (La. App. 2 Cir. 1/15/14), 130 So.3d 993.

At the time of the offense in 2012, the penalty for conviction of "aggravated incest" was imprisonment, with or without hard labor, for a term not less than 5 years, nor more than 20 years or a fine of not more than $50,000.00, or both. La. R.S. 14:78.1. Under La. R.S. 15:529.1, the penalty for a second-felony offender is imprisonment for a determinate term of not less than one-half the longest term and not more than twice the longest term prescribed for a first conviction.

On remand, the district court sentenced defendant to a term of 40 years at hard labor, the maximum allowable sentence under the habitual offender statute for a second felony offense. Prior to imposing sentence, the trial court stated that it had reviewed the presentence investigation (PSI) report and considered the nature of the crime and each of the factors set forth in Article 894.1. The trial court specifically cited defendant's lengthy criminal history "dating back to ... young adulthood" and noted that defendant actually has three felony convictions. The trial court stated that the nature of this crime is "kind of shocking" and that the defendant's behavior exhibited deliberate cruelty to the victim.

In his brief, defendant asserts that the trial court did not consider his letter accepting responsibility and expressing remorse or his substance abuse problem generated by physical and sexual abuse he suffered at a young age. However, the trial court considered the PSI report, which included defendant's statement that he had been sexually and physically abused as a child. As stated above, the trial court is not required to expressly list every aggravating and mitigating circumstance, and in considering defendant's history of perpetrating sexual crimes on children, the trial court reasonably found that imposing anything less than the maximum sentence would deprecate the seriousness of the offense committed.

In addition, a review of defendant's criminal history contained in the prior record on appeal and the PSI report reveals that his criminal behavior has continued despite being afforded numerous opportunities to rehabilitate himself. Defendant has shown that he is unable to curb his criminal behaviors even when faced with further incarceration, as indicated by his prior parole violation and the sex offense charge pending at the time of his conviction in this case.

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State v. Griffin, 243 So. 3d 1205 (La. Ct. App. 2017).

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