State v. Jenkins

573 So. 2d 1214, 1991 WL 3631
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedJanuary 17, 1991
Docket90-KA-0367
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 573 So. 2d 1214 (State v. Jenkins) 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. Jenkins, 573 So. 2d 1214, 1991 WL 3631 (La. Ct. App. 1991).

Opinion

573 So.2d 1214 (1991)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Guy JENKINS, Jr.

No. 90-KA-0367.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Fourth Circuit.

January 17, 1991.

*1215 Harry F. Connick, Dist. Atty., Richard Olsen, Asst. Dist. Atty., New Orleans, for appellee.

Joseph Meyer, Jr., New Orleans, for appellant.

Before GARRISON, LOBRANO and BECKER, JJ.

LOBRANO, Judge.

On April 27, 1989, defendant/appellant Guy Jenkins (Jenkins) was indicted for the first degree murder of Kenneth Hampton (Hampton). He was arraigned on May 10th and pled not guilty. On October 5, 1989, a twelve-member jury found him guilty of second degree murder. He was sentenced on October 13th to life imprisonment without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. His motion for appeal was filed on October 16, 1989, his record was lodged in this court on March 2, 1990, and his brief was filed on May 10, 1990.

FACTS:

On the evening of February 25, 1989, Hampton was shot and killed at the corner of Russo and Josephine Streets. The shooting was witnessed by Hampton's friends, Walter White, Jasper Lee, and Darryl Cage. White testified that the four men had traveled from their Kenner homes to the St. Thomas Project so that Hampton could buy drugs. When they arrived at the corner in question, Hampton and White entered a small grocery store to buy drinks, while Lee and Cage waited outside. According to White, just prior to entering the store, he and Hampton were approached by defendant Jenkins, who offered to sell them drugs. Hampton refused.

Upon their leaving the store, Jenkins again began trying to sell them drugs, and Hampton refused several times. Jenkins suddenly drew a gun on the four men. The men testified that another unknown man approached the group, and Jenkins ordered him to search Hampton's pockets. The man attempted this, but could not get close enough to Hampton. The man urged Jenkins to shoot Hampton. Hampton then looked up and said, "There's the man," meaning the police. As Jenkins' attention was distracted, Hampton and the others began running away. Jenkins fired three or four shots, mortally wounding Hampton. The other men scattered, with Lee hiding under the car and White jumping into a running car which was parked in the middle of the street. White drove that car to his car, which was parked down the block. He then went back to the area, picked up Lee and Cage, and they fled the scene, fearing Jenkins might still be in the area.

Police officers arriving on the scene found no witnesses to the shooting. White contacted the police either later that night *1216 or the next day, and his information led the police to Lee and Cage. An anonymous tip indicated that Jenkins was the perpetrator. The police assembled a photographic lineup which they showed to White, Lee, and Cage. Lee and Cage separately, positively identified Jenkins as the man who shot Hampton, while White made a tentative identification of Jenkins. Jenkins was arrested approximately one week later at an apartment on St. Andrew Street after the police received a tip as to his whereabouts. Two guns were seized during his arrest: one in the room where he was found, and one in the pocket of another person in the apartment. Cocaine and drug paraphernalia was also seized from the kitchen table in the apartment. Neither of the seized guns was the murder weapon. The apartment did not belong to Jenkins.

Lee and Cage both testified that they had merely taken a ride with Hampton, and they denied knowing why he had gone to the St. Thomas Project. They testified that they did not hear the conversation between Hampton and Jenkins until the final exchange which led to Jenkins pulling the gun. White admitted that Hampton had gone there to buy drugs, although Hampton was not a drug user. White testified that he had accompanied Hampton to the Project on other occasions so that Hampton could buy drugs. He testified that he had seen Jenkins in the Project before the night of the shooting. White admitted he initially made only a tentative identification of Jenkins, which he explained by noting that Jenkins' face looked fuller in the photograph than it did that night. Lee, Cage and White all positively identified Jenkins at trial as the man who shot Hampton.

ASSIGNMENT OF ERROR:

Jenkins contends that the trial court erred by denying his motion for mistrial based upon the State's eliciting evidence of other crimes. He points to the State's questions concerning the guns and drugs seized at his arrest. He argues that evidence of these seized items was not relevant to his case and constituted impermissible references to other crimes which mandated the granting of a mistrial.

The state argues that the evidence was relevant, formed part of the res gestae of the crime, and alternatively constituted harmless error.

During the direct examination of Det. Norman McCord, he was questioned about the defendant's arrest which occurred approximately a week after the shooting. The following then occurred:

Q. Now, when you went into the bedroom and had him under arrest, did you locate any weapons in the room?
BY MR. MEYER:
Judge, I ask the jury to be excused.
BY THE COURT:
Objection will be noted and you can put it on the record.
BY MR. MEYER:
Well, I want to make a strong objection to that. I would like to make the objection for the record.
BY THE COURT:
Rather than excusing the jury, why don't we go into chambers for a second.
(A CONFERENCE WAS HELD IN CHAMBERS.)
BY THE COURT:
You may proceed.
BY MR. WILLIAMS:
Q. Detective, were any weapons seized from near this person in that bedroom?
A. A 9 mm. Ingram, it's like a little small hand machine gun looking thing.
Q. Where was that recovered?
A. That was on a cedar chest, a type of chest, right on the inside of the door.
Q. How far was that located from where you found the defendant?
A. Right next to the bed.
Q. I show you State's Exhibit No. 13, do you recognize this?
A. Yes, sir this is the Ingram that was recovered.
Q. Was that gun seized by the police department?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Was it turned over to the Crime Lab?
A. Yes, sir.
*1217 Q. Do you have the results of this being—
A. It was not the murder weapon.
Q. You found that he has been killed with a .38?
A. That's correct.
Q. Now, were there any other guns recovered from that apartment?
A. Yes, sir, a little .25 caliber automatic.
Q. I show you now State's Exhibit No—
BY MR. MEYER:
Note my continuing objection especially now since the officer said they identified it as a .38 caliber.
BY THE COURT:
Objection will be noted. You may continue.

It was then established another person in the apartment had had the .25 caliber gun in her pocket.

When counsel for the defendant cross-examined Det.

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Related

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660 So. 2d 919 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1995)
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660 So. 2d 1207 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1995)
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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
573 So. 2d 1214, 1991 WL 3631, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-jenkins-lactapp-1991.