State v. Lynch

655 So. 2d 470, 1995 WL 271892
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMay 5, 1995
Docket94 KA 0543
StatusPublished
Cited by25 cases

This text of 655 So. 2d 470 (State v. Lynch) 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. Lynch, 655 So. 2d 470, 1995 WL 271892 (La. Ct. App. 1995).

Opinion

655 So.2d 470 (1995)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Clyde Aaron LYNCH.

No. 94 KA 0543.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, First Circuit.

May 5, 1995.

*473 Lori L. Nunn, Baton Rouge, for State.

Walter C. Dumas, Baton Rouge, for defendant-appellant.

Before LOTTINGER, C.J., and SHORTESS and CARTER, JJ.

SHORTESS, Judge.

Clyde Aaron Lynch (defendant) and a codefendant, Raymond L. Austin, Jr., were charged by bill of information with two counts of armed robbery, LSA-R.S. 14:64. Lynch pled not guilty and, after trial by jury, was convicted as charged. The court sentenced him on each count to serve a term of fifty years imprisonment at hard labor, without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence and with credit for time served. The court ordered that the sentences be served concurrently. Defendant has appealed, urging thirteen assignments of error. Assignment number ten was not briefed on appeal and, therefore, is considered abandoned. See Uniform Rules— Courts of Appeal, Rule 2-12.4. The case against Austin is not before us.

FACTS

On December 13, 1991, Richard and Susan Lipsey left their Baton Rouge home at about 7:00 p.m. About an hour after they left, Raymond Austin and defendant broke a bedroom window in the home and entered through the window. After the men entered the house, they searched the bedroom looking for items to steal. Defendant found a revolver in the nightstand, and Austin broke into Mrs. Lipsey's jewelry box. Austin put the jewelry he found into a binocular case he found in the closet. Austin then prepared to leave as he and defendant had planned. He warned defendant not to enter the hallway because of the alarm system and told defendant he would leave the binocular case by the fence. Austin then left the residence, leaving defendant in the bedroom.

Since 1989, Austin had been burglarizing homes in upscale neighborhoods without being caught. Because he dressed entirely in black and wore a mask, investigating officers referred to him as the "Ninja burglar." Austin considered himself to be only a burglar and avoided confrontations with the residents of the homes he burglarized. When he told *474 defendant about his plans to burglarize the Lipsey residence, defendant expressed an interest in breaking into a safe Austin saw when he checked out the house. Austin knew they could not open the safe, so they agreed Austin would break into the house and then he would leave defendant behind. Defendant stayed at the house, intending to make the residents open the safe when they returned.

The Lipseys returned at about 10:30 p.m. Mr. Lipsey went into the backyard to check on their dogs, and Mrs. Lipsey opened the back door with her key. Everything appeared normal to Mrs. Lipsey. After checking messages on the telephone answering machine, she walked to her bedroom. As she turned on the light to go into her bedroom, a man jumped out from behind her and grabbed her. The man hit her in the head with a gun and repeatedly threatened to kill her. While she was struggling with the man in a dark hallway, Mr. Lipsey entered and thought his wife was choking or having a heart attack. However, he quickly realized an intruder was in the house.

The man ordered the Lipseys into their bedroom, made Mr. Lipsey lie down, and forced Mrs. Lipsey to open the safe. The intruder repeatedly screamed threats and brandished the weapon throughout the altercation. In response to his demands, Mrs. Lipsey placed all of the cash, jewelry, and watches which were in the safe into a canvas bag he gave her. Mrs. Lipsey recognized the bag as being one her husband recently had purchased. When she finished putting the items into the bag, the intruder made her lie down next to her husband, then made the victims remove the jewelry they were wearing and empty their pockets. He then forced the Lipseys into their bathroom and made them lie down in the bathtub. Several times the intruder opened the bathroom door and warned them not to get up. When they heard their dogs barking, Mr. Lipsey cautiously left the bathroom and telephoned the police.

When the police arrived, Mr. Lipsey provided a detailed description of the intruder. He had anticipated being asked to describe the intruder and had tried to remember as many features as he could. At trial, he described the intruder as wearing dark blue or black clothing with long sleeves and long matching pants. The intruder wore a black mask which covered his hair, ears, and chin; but Mr. Lipsey could see the assailant's eyes, nose, and upper lip. During part of the robbery, including the time when the intruder removed Mr. Lipsey's bracelet, the intruder's mask was partially off his face, allowing Mr. Lipsey to see the assailant's face better. Mr. Lipsey described the eyes as being very large and penetrating and the nose as being rounded. He estimated the intruder's height at 5' 7" or 5' 8", weight to be 150 or 160 pounds, and age at early 20's. The intruder's complexion was very dark. He was muscular and in good physical shape. When asked to view defendant in court, Mr. Lipsey testified that it was difficult for him to identify the intruder but that he was ninety percent certain defendant was the person who had robbed him.

The Lipseys made a list of the items stolen from them. The intruder took approximately $2,000.00 in cash, jewelry and watches valued at about $400,000.00, and some guns. Much of the jewelry had belonged to the Lipseys' grandparents and great-grandparents.

During the initial investigation, officers located the binocular case by the fence. It still contained some of Mrs. Lipsey's jewelry which had been taken from her jewelry box. Eventually the investigation into this and other similar burglaries focused on Raymond Austin, and the police conducted a twenty-four hour surveillance of Austin's activities.

Austin finally was caught on February 11, 1992, after the police saw him park his car next to a residential area. Dressed in black, Austin walked into the neighborhood. He was stopped when he returned to his car. The police recognized a religious medallion Austin was wearing as having been stolen from Mr. Lipsey. When the police removed Austin's watch to put on the handcuffs, they saw it had Mr. Lipsey's name on it. The police also found jewelry belonging to the Lipseys in Austin's car. When Mr. Lipsey came to the station to identify the jewelry, he saw Austin and told the detective that Austin *475 (who was tall and light-complexioned) did not look like the man who had robbed him.

After the police arrested Austin, they executed a search warrant for the apartment he shared with defendant. Defendant was home when the warrant was executed. Beside defendant's bed, the officers found the canvas bag into which Mrs. Lipsey had put the jewelry. Some small pieces of jewelry belonging to the Lipseys still were in the bag. On a coffee table in the living room, the officers found a watch which defendant claimed to own. However, the serial number on the watch matched a watch owned by Mr. Lipsey. Defendant claimed Austin gave him the jewelry and watch. Numerous pieces of jewelry belonging to the Lipseys were found in Austin's bedroom. The police also searched defendant's car and found two guns belonging to Mr. Lipsey in the trunk.

Initially Austin denied participation in the robberies of the Lipseys. However, eventually he admitted his involvement in the break-in and detailed defendant's involvement. According to Austin, when he next saw defendant after the offenses, defendant had a bag with jewelry in it. Defendant told Austin he had forgotten to pick up the binocular case.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
655 So. 2d 470, 1995 WL 271892, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-lynch-lactapp-1995.