State v. Hawkins

219 So. 3d 1133, 2016 La.App. 4 Cir. 0458, 2017 La. App. LEXIS 870
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMay 17, 2017
DocketNO. 2016-KA-0458
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 219 So. 3d 1133 (State v. Hawkins) 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. Hawkins, 219 So. 3d 1133, 2016 La.App. 4 Cir. 0458, 2017 La. App. LEXIS 870 (La. Ct. App. 2017).

Opinion

Judge Daniel L. Dysart

11 Defendant-appellant, Glynn . Hawkins, appeals his convictions of second degree murder, discharge of a firearm during a violent crime and obstruction of justice, while defendant-appellant, Alex Lewis, appeals his conviction of second degree murder. In this appeal, Mr. Hawkins and Mr. Lewis both raise* the issue of whether the trial court erroneously allowed evidence of their gang affiliation to be introduced at trial. In addition, Mr. Hawkins argues that the trial court erroneously allowed evidence of other crimes to be introduced at trial. Mr. Lewis raises the separate issue of whether there was sufficient evidence adduced at trial to support his conviction.

Finding no merit to these assignments of error and for the reasons set forth more fully herein, we affirm the defendants’ convictions and sentences.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On the afternoon of March 9, 2013, Bertrand Dezara was murdered in the courtyard of an apartment building in eastern New Orleans. Shortly before or around the time of the murder, the New Orleans Police Department was dispatched to the scene after a 911 call had been made and "an aggravated burglary had been reported.

L.Two days later, on March 11, 2013, a shootout occurred on Claiborne Avenue near Washington Avenue in New Orleans between the occupants of two moving vehicles. A handgun used during the shootout and recovered from the scene was determined to have been one of the guns used in the murder of Mr. Dezara. ■

On May 28, 2013, Mr. Hawkins and Mr. .Lewis were jointly indicted by an Orleans Parish grand jury for the second degree murder of Mr. Dezara.1 Mr. Hawkins was also indicted on two other counts; namely, for the discharge of a firearm during a violent crime and for obstruction of justice. Both’ of the latter charges arose from the March 11, 2013 shootout on Claiborne Avenue.

Defendants pled not guilty to the charges and filed motions to suppress the evidence and identifications, which were denied by the trial court. The State then filed a motion to allow Prieur2 evidence as [1136]*1136to Mr. Hawkins and a motion to allow introduction of evidence of gang association as to both of the defendants. The State’s motions were granted and Mr. Lewis sought a supervisory writ of review as to the trial court’s ruling on the admissibility of gang association evidence. This Court denied the writ application on August 18, 2014.3

LA jury trial was held in September, 2015 and defendants were found guilty on all counts. After motions for a new trial were denied, defendants waived delays and proceeded to sentencing. The trial court sentenced Mr. Lewis to life imprisonment at hard labor, without the benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence. Mr. Hawkins received the same sentence on the second degree murder count. As to the conviction of the discharge of a firearm during a violent crime, Mr. Hawkins was sentenced to twenty years at hard labor, without the benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence. Mr. Hawkins received the same twenty year sentence for his conviction of obstruction of justice. All of Mr. Hawkins’ sentences were to run concurrently.

The State then filed a multiple bill of information as to Mr. Hawkins based upon his convictions for discharge of a firearm and obstruction of justice. A hearing on the multiple bill was held on November 16, 2015, at which time the trial court adjudicated Mr. Hawkins to be a third felony offender. His prior sentences were vacated and the trial court re-sentenced him to eighty years at hard labor without the benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence on the discharge of a firearm charge; and forty years at hard labor on the charge of obstruction of justice, also to be served without the benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence. The trial court ordered these sentences to be served concurrently with each other and the sentence on the second degree murder conviction.

Mr, Hawkins filed a motion for new trial which was denied by the trial court. This appeal followed.

LTRIAL TESTIMONY

April 19, 2012 murder of Jeffrey Do-mingue

Detective Justin Rice, who in April, 2012, was a detective with the homicide division of the New Orleans Police Department (“NOPD”), testified that, on April 19, 2012, he was the lead investigator of a homicide which occurred on Jackson Avenue at Carondelet Street. When he arrived at the scene, he found the victim, Jeffrey Domingue, slumped over in a vehicle which had crashed into a bus. The victim had been shot several times and was already deceased. Detective Rice obtained the license plate number of the suspect’s vehicle, and also learned from eyewitnesses that there were at least four occupants of that vehicle at the time of the shooting.

Detective Rice then determined that the suspect’s vehicle had been rented from Avis Budget Rental by Norman Johnson. Detective Rice contacted Mr. Johnson who advised that he had rented the vehicle for Quilla Harris, his girlfriend’s daughter. [1137]*1137Detective Rice questioned Ms. Harris, who advised that she had allowed her cousin, Eric Harris, and his friend, “Glynn” to use the vehicle.

Detective Rice determined that “Glynn” was likely Glynn Hawkins (because the Intelligence Division of the NOPD was aware that Eric Harris and Mr. Hawkins were associates of one another) and discovered that, on the date of the shooting, Mr. Hawkins was wearing a GPS ankle monitor. Detective Rice then obtained the records of Mr. Hawkins’ GPS ankle monitor and learned that, at the time of Mr. Do-mingue’s murder, Mr. Hawkins was located at the intersection of Jackson Avenue and Carondelet Street. The records reflected that, around that time, Mr. Hawkins was moving at a fast pace, suggestive of his having been in a vehicle travelling at a high rate of speed on Carondelet Street.

|fiMr. Hawkins was arrested in connection with Mr. Domingue’s murder and pled guilty to accessory after the fact (See footnote 2, supra ).4 Mr. Hawkins was released from prison on January 30, 2013.

March 9, 2013 murder of Bernard De-zara

On March 9, 2013, Sergeant Arlen Barnes, who at the time was a member of the NOPD Task Force assigned to assist with patrols of the Seventh District, responded, around 2:54 p.m., to a 2:51 p.m. 911 phone call reporting an aggravated burglary at an apartment complex in eastern New Orleans. When he arrived, he encountered the decedent, Mr. Dezara, who showed no signs of life, lying adjacent to Building Q of the apartment complex.5 Mr. Dezara’s body exhibited several gunshot wounds. Sergeant Barries notified the NOPD homicide division, and Detective Maggie McCourt, of the NOPD homicide division, arrived and took over the investigation.

• According to Detective McCourt, while the investigating officers attempted to locate witnesses shortly after Mr. Dezara’s death, they were unable to do so. She then learned of the earlier 911 call which had reported the aggravated burglary and she directed two officers (Detective Jacob Lundy, a detective with the homicide division, and Detective Vaught) to the apartment from which the call was made (located in Building Q).6 There, the officers found two individuals—Mr. Bryer and Lance Stewart. According to Detective Lundy, Mr. Bryer and Mr.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
219 So. 3d 1133, 2016 La.App. 4 Cir. 0458, 2017 La. App. LEXIS 870, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-hawkins-lactapp-2017.