State v. McZeal

779 So. 2d 826, 99 La.App. 4 Cir. 3061, 2000 La. App. LEXIS 2966, 2000 WL 1770963
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedNovember 29, 2000
DocketNo. 99-KA-3061
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 779 So. 2d 826 (State v. McZeal) 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. McZeal, 779 So. 2d 826, 99 La.App. 4 Cir. 3061, 2000 La. App. LEXIS 2966, 2000 WL 1770963 (La. Ct. App. 2000).

Opinion

1 .BYRNES, Judge.

Defendant, Terrell McZeal, pleaded not guilty to a charge of second degree murder, a violation of La. R.S. 14:30.1. The trial court found probable cause and denied defendant’s motion to suppress the identification on October 28, 1994. A mistrial was declared during defendant’s first trial, on August 15, 1996. A twelve member jury found the defendant guilty as charged on December 5, 1996. The trial court denied defendant’s motion for new trial on December 20, 1996 and, after defendant waived all legal delays, he was sentenced to life imprisonment. The trial court denied defendant’s motion for reconsideration of sentence, and granted his motion for appeal. On June 2, 1999, in an unpublished opinion, this court vacated defendant’s conviction and sentence and remanded the case for a new trial, due to an incomplete record.1 Subsequently, the missing portions of the record were made available and, on September 1, 1999, the Louisiana Supreme Court reversed the decision of this court and remanded the case for reconstitution of the record and re-briefing on the merits.2

The reconstituted record was lodged with this court on December 8,1999. ¡.FACTS

New Orleans Police Officer Dwayne Marshall testified that on May 21, 1994 he responded to a daytime shooting in the rear driveway of the 2200 block of Lafitte Street, in the Lafitte Housing Development. At the scene, he found a red vehicle with an open door and a black male inside with a fatal gunshot wound to the head. He preserved the crime scene, and a witness, Gina Cannon, advised him that she had observed the shooting. Officer Marshall identified a police report prepared by his partner, Officer Calvin Bradley, reflecting that a description and other information was obtained from Ms. Cannon. Officer Marshall said that a description of the suspect was also broadcast over the police radio: “Wanted subject: Negro male, 15-16, dark complexion, 6’4”, dressed in all black with 1,000,000 on the back of his jacket, carrying a yellow sack.” However, the police report reflects that the perpetrator’s height is six feet, one inch, which height was based on information furnished by Ms. Cannon, and which height was confirmed by Ms. Cannon in her testimony at trial.

It was stipulated that if Dr. Alvera Hunt, of the Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office, were called to testify, he would be qualified as expert in the field of forensic pathology, and would testify that he examined the body of the victim, Kevin Edwards; and that the decedent suffered: “[1] A gunshot wound to the right temple, perforating wound of the brain, and a skull fracture. [2] A superficial gunshot wound to the face through and through, [3] a superficial gunshot wound to the left shoulder through and through, and [4] a superficial graze gunshot wound to the chin.” In addition, Dr. Hunt would testify that a bullet jacket was recovered from the victim’s body. Finally, it was stipulated that a laboratory report would | ¡¡indicate that the victim had no alcohol, drugs, or alkaloids in his system at the time of the examination.

New Orleans Police Officer John Tread-way, qualified by stipulation as an expert in the field of firearms examination, testified that he examined three 10mm cartridge cases recovered from the scene of the homicide, one fired 10mm bullet recovered from the scene, and one fired 10mm bullet recovered during the autopsy of the victim. His examinations revealed only [829]*829that the three cartridge cases had been fired by the same weapon, and that the two fired bullets both had polygonal rifling. He did not have a gun to test fire.

New Orleans Police Detective Thomatra Green testified that she responded to the homicide, and collected3 eighteen partial fingerprints, fifteen from the driver’s door of the 1985 Mercury, and three from a liquor bottle found inside.

Gina Cannon testified that on May 21, 1994, she worked the morning shift at the Quality Inn Midtown, and that the latest she would have gotten off work was between 4:30 and 5:00 p.m., 6:00 p.m. at the latest. She then proceeded to 2211 Lafitte Street, in the Lafitte Housing Development, to pick up her children, whom she left with her grandmother while she worked. She stopped at a Citgo gas station at the corner of Tulane Avenue and Broad Street, where she purchased two lottery tickets for her grandmother. As she drove to pick up her children, she had the driver and passenger windows rolled down, and the lottery tickets flew onto the floorboard. When she got to the Lafitte Housing Development, she parked her yellow and gold LTD in the back driveway. She leaned over to pick up the lottery tickets, and heard a car pull alongside of her. She looked up to see a red car | occupied by two black males, which was close enough to hers so that her driver’s door would hit the other vehicle’s passenger door if it was opened. Ms. Cannon identified crime scene photographs of her vehicle and the red car. She heard three shots, and remained down. She waited for approximately one minute, and looked up to see someone walking away from the vehicle. The man turned his head to look, and she noted that he had what she later learned was “cleft lip.” This was the first time she had seen the man’s face. At the time she described it as a “Mack at Night” face, likening it to a “moon face” depicted in a McDonald’s hamburger commercial. She identified defendant as that individual. She said he was wearing black nylon jogging pants, a black T-shirt with ten million on the back of it, and dark-colored tennis shoes, and he was putting a black gun into a yellow and blue bag he was carrying. She saw defendant some three to four days after the murder talking on a pay telephone, and drove to the nearby Sixth District police station to report the sighting. Ms. Cannon viewed a photographic lineup on May 23, 1994, in which she identified defendant’s photograph. She said she observed defendant in “broad daylight,” with nothing blocking her view. Ms. Cannon had never seen defendant before that day, and she said she remembered him only because of his cleft lip.

When presented with the photo lineup during cross examination, Ms. Cannon admitted that defendant’s photograph was the only person depicted who had a cleft lip. Ms. Cannon said on cross examination that she saw defendant seated in the passenger seat of the red car, but did not see the shooting. However, she said she saw defendant exit the car with the gun in his hand. Ms. Cannon denied telling police at the scene that the gunman was wearing shorts (she said pants) or that his shirt had one million on it (she said it was ten million). She was 1 ¡^positive she told police that the gunman had a long moon shaped face, and that something was wrong with his lip. She said she did not tell police the gunman was six feet four inches tall, but only six feet or six feet one inch tall. Ms. Cannon stated on redirect examination that she saw defendant exit the car with the gun right after she heard the shots.

New Orleans Police Officer Raymond Griffin testified that on June 23, 1994,4 he was leaving the Sixth District Police Sta[830]*830tion when Ms. Cannon approached and informed him that she could identify a person wanted for murder. He and other officers proceeded to the location where Ms. Cannon directed them, and saw defendant enter a vehicle, which was preparing to drive off. Officers stopped the vehicle, took defendant into custody, and later transported him to the homicide office. No firearm or ammunition was found on defendant’s person at the time of his apprehension.

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Related

State v. Ramirez
154 So. 3d 636 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2014)

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Bluebook (online)
779 So. 2d 826, 99 La.App. 4 Cir. 3061, 2000 La. App. LEXIS 2966, 2000 WL 1770963, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-mczeal-lactapp-2000.