State v. Marshall

128 So. 3d 1156, 13 La.App. 5 Cir. 233, 2013 WL 5856199, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 2212
Louisiana Court of Appeal·Decided October 30, 2013·No. No. 13-KA-233·Published·Cited by 10 cases

Opinion

STEPHEN J. WINDHORST, Judge.

12Pefendant, Dedrick Marshall, was convicted of one count of second degree battery violation of La. R.S. 14:34.1, and one count of attempted false imprisonment while armed with a dangerous weapon in violation of La. R.S. 14:27/46.1. He was sentenced to three years at hard labor on each count, with both sentences to run concurrently. Defendant now appeals from his conviction and sentence, contending that the trial court erred in allowing the admission of other crimes evidence at his trial. For the reasons that follow, we affirm defendant’s convictions and sentences.

The following was adduced at trial. Defendant and the victim, Iesha Wells, were in a relationship for approximately 10 years and had one child together. Ms. Wells also had a daughter who was an infant when the two met, and defendant treated the child as if she were his child. During their time together, defendant had repeatedly accused Ms. Wells of infidelity, which she denied. At the time of the incident, the couple was residing together at 2708 Destrehan Ave., Apt. B, in Harvey, Louisiana.

3In the afternoon hours of June 5, 2012, defendant had dropped their children off at Ms. Wells’ place of employment, and as a result she had to leave work. Upon arriving at their apartment, Ms. Wells saw defendant taking items from the house, and she called the police. Defendant stated that he did not want to be in the relationship anymore. Upon instruction from the police, defendant gave Ms. Wells the keys to the apartment. After the police advised defendant not to return, he left.

Ms. Wells returned to the apartment at approximately 8:00 or 9:00 P.M. that evening and found defendant was there. He said that he wanted to reconcile. He went to sleep downstairs while Ms. Wells went to sleep upstairs.

When Ms. Wells awoke at approximately 6:00 A.M. the following morning, defendant was on top of her, punching her in the face and pulling her hair. Ms. Wells testified that even before she woke up, defendant had already punched her in the eye. As she became conscious, Ms. Wells began to fight back. The two went downstairs, where defendant grabbed a knife from the kitchen and told Ms. Wells that if he could not have her, then nobody could have her. He accused her of infidelity, wrapped his hand around her hair, and cut it off. He then went outside and slashed all four tires on her vehicle so that she could not leave. When defendant went outside, Ms. Wells called 911.

By the time the police arrived, defendant had re-entered the apartment. When the responding officers knocked at her door, defendant put a knife to Ms. Wells’ back and demanded that she not answer the knock at the door. Receiving no response, the police left.

In an attempt to get out of her apartment, Ms. Wells then falsely admitted to defendant that she cheated on him. She offered to bring him to her non-existent boyfriend’s home. Ms. Wells got into a [1159] truck with defendant and the two began to ride around under the pretense of finding the man with whom she had been having |4an affair. Ms. Wells knocked on a random door, which was answered by Sheryl Wall. Ms. Wells asked for help, relating that defendant was beating her, and had been doing so since 5:30 that morning. Ms. Wall pulled Ms. Wells into the home for safety, and they called the police. After Ms. Wells went into Ms. Wall’s home, defendant went to the door and started beating on it. Defendant was told that the police had been called, and he left.

Deputy Chad Mackie and Deputy Kevin McGuffie of the Jefferson Parish Sheriffs Office responded to a disturbance call at 3837 Deer Run Lane in Harvey, which was Ms. Wall’s home. When they arrived at the residence, there was a West Jefferson EMT unit parked out front. Deputy Mackie went inside the EMT unit where he saw the victim, Ms. Wells. She was “scared, upset, and crying,” her cheek bone and eye were swollen, and it appeared that parts of her hair had been cut. Ms. Wells related that her boyfriend, De-drick Marshall, had injured her. She indicated that he fled the scene in a blue pickup truck and was likely going home because that was where their children were.

Deputy McGuffie left the scene to pursue defendant, whom he apprehended outside of the Destrehan Avenue apartment. Deputy Mackie arrived, and defendant was placed in the back of Deputy Mackie’s vehicle. Both Deputy McGuffie and Deputy Mackie observed a van in the parking lot that had four flat tires.

At trial, Deputy Mackie also testified that he had responded to a hang-up 911 call at 2708 Destrehan Avenue, where defendant lived, at approximately 8:00 or 9:00 that same morning. Deputy Mackie knocked on the door of the residence, but the windows were closed, the door was locked and no one answered. As a result, the 911 call was noted to be unfounded.

|sIn his sole assignment of error, defendant argues that the trial court erred in allowing the introduction of other crimes evidence under La. C.E. art. 404B(1).

Prior to trial, the State filed a Notice of Intent to Use Evidence of Other Crimes, seeking to introduce evidence of prior bad acts or crimes at trial, which it contended defendant committed upon Ms. Wells in the years leading up to the offense for which he was currently charged. Specifically, the State sought to introduce evidence of an altercation in August of 2005, in which defendant pushed Ms. Wells and told her, “[I]f I can’t have you no one can.” The State also sought to introduce evidence of a February 2006 guilty plea for domestic assault on Ms. Wells. The trial judge granted the State’s 404B(1) motion. Defendant now contends that the court erred in allowing the introduction of these previous domestic disputes between him and Ms. Wells, which he maintains served no purpose other than to portray him in the worst possible light as a man of bad character. Defendant also argues that this error was not harmless.

Relevant evidence is evidence having any tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence. La. C.E. art. 401. All relevant evidence is admissible except as otherwise provided by positive law. Evidence which is not relevant is not admissible. La. C.E. art. 402. Although relevant, evidence may be excluded if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, misleading the jury, or by considerations of undue delay, or waste of [1160] time. La. C.E. art. 403. Evidence of other crimes or bad acts committed by a criminal defendant is generally not admissible at trial. La. C.E. art. 404B(i); State v. Prieur, 277 So.2d 126, 128 (La.1973). However, when such evidence tends to prove a material fact and has independent relevance other than showing that the defendant is of bad 1 ficharacter, it may be admitted by certain statutory and jurisprudential exceptions to the exclusionary rule. State v. Aleman, 01-743 (La.App. 5 Cir. 1/15/02), 809 So.2d 1056, 1065, writ denied, 02-481 (La.3/14/03), 839 So.2d 26.

La. C.E. art. 404B(i) provides:

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State v. Marshall, 128 So. 3d 1156, 13 La.App. 5 Cir. 233, 2013 WL 5856199, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 2212 (La. Ct. App. 2013).

128 So. 3d 1156 (State v. Marshall) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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