State v. Howard

855 So. 2d 881, 2003 WL 22199851
Louisiana Court of Appeal·Decided October 23, 2003·No. 37,580-KA, 37,581-KA·Published·Cited by 11 cases

Opinion

855 So.2d 881 (2003)

STATE of Louisiana, Appellee,
v.
Glenn E. HOWARD, Appellant.

Nos. 37,580-KA, 37,581-KA.

Court of Appeals of Louisiana, Second Circuit.

September 24, 2003.
Opinion Granting Rehearing in Part October 23, 2003.

*883 Derrick D. Carson, for Appellant.

William R. Coenen, Jr., District Attorney, Johnny R. Boothe, Assistant District Attorney, for Appellee.

Before BROWN, STEWART and GASKINS, JJ.

GASKINS, J.

The defendant, Glenn E. Howard, entered pleas of guilty to one count of attempted manufacture of methamphetamine and one count of possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. The pleas were entered pursuant to State v. Crosby, 338 So.2d 584 (La.1976), reserving the defendant's right to appeal the denial of his motion to suppress the evidence against him. The trial court sentenced the defendant to serve five years at hard labor, without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence, for attempted manufacture of methamphetamine, and five years at hard labor for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. The sentences were ordered to be served concurrently. The defendant now appeals the denial of his motion to suppress, and claims that the sentences imposed are excessive. For the following reasons, we affirm.

FACTS

On December 31, 2001, following a tip from a confidential informant, Franklin Parish Sheriff's deputies investigated allegations that the defendant and several individuals were manufacturing methamphetamine at the defendant's camp house. The deputies received the defendant's permission to search the house and discovered materials used in the production of methamphetamine, as well as the finished product. *884 They also discovered marijuana, which the defendant acknowledged was his. The defendant was arrested and charged with the manufacture of methamphetamine, and possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. On December 12, 2002, the defendant filed a motion to suppress the evidence against him, as well as any statements he made during his detention and/or arrest. He claimed that he did not consent to the search of the camp house. The motion to suppress was denied by the trial court. Pursuant to a plea bargain, the defendant entered pleas of guilty to attempted manufacture of methamphetamine and to possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. The pleas were entered pursuant to Crosby, with the defendant reserving the right to seek review of the ruling on the motion to suppress.

The defendant was sentenced to serve 10 years at hard labor on each count, with the sentences to run concurrently. The sentences were suspended and the defendant was placed on supervised probation for five years.

The state filed a motion to reconsider the sentences, arguing that attempted manufacture of methamphetamine carries a mandatory sentence of at least five years at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. The trial court granted the motion to reconsider and resentenced the defendant to serve five years at hard labor without benefits for attempted manufacture of methamphetamine and five years at hard labor for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, with the sentences to run concurrently. The defendant was given credit for time served and was allowed to post an appeal bond.

The defendant appealed, claiming that the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress the evidence and that the sentences imposed were excessive.

MOTION TO SUPPRESS

The defendant contends that the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress. He argues that the warrantless entry into the camp house was unlawful and without his consent and asks that all physical evidence and his statements be suppressed. In his amended motion to suppress, he also objected to the use of all statements made after he was arrested and transported to the detention center in Franklin Parish.

La. Const. art. 1 § 5 provides:

Every person shall be secure in his person, property, communications, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches, seizures, or invasions of privacy. No warrant shall issue without probable cause supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, the persons or things to be seized, and the lawful purpose or reason for the search. Any person adversely affected by a search or seizure conducted in violation of this Section shall have standing to raise its illegality in the appropriate court.

Motions to suppress are governed by La C. Cr. P. art. 703 which provides in pertinent part:

A. A defendant adversely affected may move to suppress any evidence from use at the trial on the merits on the ground that it was unconstitutionally obtained.
B. A defendant may move on any constitutional ground to suppress a confession or statement of any nature made by the defendant.
C. A motion filed under the provisions of this Article must be filed in accordance with Article 521, unless opportunity therefor did not exist or neither the *885 defendant nor his counsel was aware of the existence of the evidence or the ground of the motion, or unless the failure to file the motion was otherwise excusable. The court in its discretion may permit the filing of a motion to suppress at any time before or during the trial.
D. On the trial of a motion to suppress filed under the provisions of this Article, the burden of proof is on the defendant to prove the ground of his motion, except that the state shall have the burden of proving the admissibility of a purported confession or statement by the defendant or of any evidence seized without a warrant.
E. (1) An evidentiary hearing on a motion to suppress shall be held only when the defendant alleges facts that would require the granting of relief. The state may file an answer to the motion. The defendant may testify in support of a motion to suppress without being subject to examination on other matters. The defendant's testimony cannot be used by the state except for the purpose of attacking the credibility of the defendant's testimony at the trial on the merits.

A warrantless search and seizure is presumed unreasonable unless it is justified by one of the narrowly drawn exceptions to the warrant requirement. State v. Talbert, 449 So.2d 446 (La.1984). A valid consent search is a well-recognized exception to the warrant requirement, but the burden is upon the state to prove that the consent was given freely and voluntarily. State v. Crews, 28,153 (La.App.2d Cir.5/8/96), 674 So.2d 1082. An oral consent to a search is valid. State v. McGill, 31,202 (La.App.2d Cir.9/23/98), 720 So.2d 720, writ denied, 1998-2721 (La.2/5/99), 737 So.2d 746.

Voluntariness is a question of fact to be determined by the trial judge under the facts and circumstances of each case. These factual determinations are to be given great weight on appellate review. State v. Edwards, 434 So.2d 395 (La.1983); State v. Ossey, 446 So.2d 280 (La.1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 916, 105 S.Ct. 293, 83 L.Ed.2d 228 (1984); State v. Durr, 28,197 (La.App.2d Cir.6/26/96), 677 So.2d 596.

In this matter, the defendant filed a motion to suppress all evidence seized from his camp house

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State v. Howard, 855 So. 2d 881, 2003 WL 22199851 (La. Ct. App. 2003).

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