State v. Patrick

244 So. 3d 778
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedOctober 18, 2017
DocketNo. 51,579–KA
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 244 So. 3d 778 (State v. Patrick) 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. Patrick, 244 So. 3d 778 (La. Ct. App. 2017).

Opinion

WILLIAMS, J.

*780The defendant, Diane Ellen Patrick, was charged by bill of information with vehicular homicide, a violation of La. R.S. 14:32.1. The defendant pled guilty as charged without an agreement as to sentencing. The defendant was sentenced to pay a $3,000 fine and serve 22 years' imprisonment at hard labor. Defendant appeals her sentence as excessive. For the following reasons, we vacate the illegally lenient sentence and remand for resentencing.

FACTS

The record shows that on December 6, 2014, the defendant was driving a pickup truck north on Buncombe Road in Shreveport, Louisiana, when her vehicle left the roadway and struck Se'Destini Fields, a 23-year-old woman who was canvassing the neighborhood on foot for the Democratic Party with her fiancé. Fields was transported to University Health System Hospital where she ultimately passed away as a result of her injuries. Defendant was taken by the police from the scene to University Health, where she voluntarily submitted a blood sample for toxicological analysis. The results of the blood test revealed that defendant was under the influence of benzodiazepines, cannabinoids and opiates at the time the sample was taken. After being advised of her rights under Miranda v. Arizona , 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966), defendant told police she had taken three Xanax pills, two or three hydrocodone pills and had smoked marijuana the night before the accident. Defendant was arrested and charged with vehicular homicide. Defendant pled guilty as charged and the district court ordered a presentence investigation.

At the sentencing hearing, the defendant's sons, Bradley Stuckey and Dustin Stuckey, testified on their mother's behalf. Both men stated that their mother was very apologetic for her actions. Dustin Stuckey stated that he believed that his mother's drug addiction started after she was prescribed pain medications following an accident. Defendant addressed the trial court and apologized to the victim's family.

Prior to imposing sentence, the trial court noted its review and consideration of the relevant sentencing factors set forth in La. C.Cr.P. art. 894.1, and the information provided in the presentence investigation report. The trial court stated that it had also reviewed all of the investigative reports, as well as letters submitted by the victim's family members and friends. The trial court determined that the maximum sentence was not warranted because the defendant had accepted responsibility for her actions and spared the victim's family the anguish of a trial. However, the trial court also concluded that defendant should have known that her conduct placed the lives of innocent people at risk, especially given her level of impairment, and that she had utilized a dangerous weapon, her vehicle, during the commission of the crime. The trial court recognized that defendant's crime resulted in a permanent loss to the victim and her family.

*781The defendant's criminal history was especially relevant to the trial court's consideration of the appropriate sentence because it demonstrated a "history over the past-most seriously over the past six years or so of drug abuse and driving under the influence of a controlled dangerous substance[.]" In particular, the trial court noted that defendant had pled guilty to driving while intoxicated, first offense, in 2013 and driving while intoxicated, second offense, in 2014. The trial court explained that this history shows that defendant was aware that she needed to seek treatment for her addiction, but refused to do so before her conduct resulted in the loss of life. Defendant's cooperation with police and her decision to take responsibility for her actions were considered mitigating factors by the trial court.

Based upon the aforementioned factors, the trial court sentenced defendant to pay a $3,000 fine and serve 22 years' imprisonment at hard labor. Defendant was also ordered to pay $5,000 in restitution to the victim's family to cover funeral expenses. The trial court specifically noted that it was not designating the defendant's offense as a crime of violence. The defendant's motion for reconsideration of sentence was denied. This appeal followed.

DISCUSSION

The defendant contends the trial court erred in imposing an excessive sentence. Defendant argues she is entitled to a less harsh sentence because she accepted responsibility for her actions by pleading guilty.

In reviewing a claim of excessive sentence, the appellate court first considers whether the record shows that the trial court took cognizance of the sentencing guidelines in La. C.Cr.P. art. 894.1. State v. Jackson , 51,011 (La. App. 2 Cir. 1/11/17), 211 So.3d 639 ; State v. Taylor , 49,467 (La. App. 2 Cir. 1/14/15), 161 So.3d 963. The record should reflect adequate consideration of those guidelines. Id.

The reviewing court next determines whether the sentence is constitutionally excessive by considering whether the sentence is grossly out of proportion to the seriousness of the offense or nothing more than a purposeless infliction of pain and suffering. La. Const. art. I, § 20 ; State v. Dorthey , 623 So.2d 1276 (La. 1993) ; State v. Lindsey , 50,324 (La. App. 2 Cir. 2/24/16), 189 So.3d 1104. A sentence is considered grossly disproportionate if, when the crime and punishment are viewed in light of the harm done to society, it shocks the sense of justice. Id.

The trial court has wide discretion in the imposition of sentences within the statutory limits and such sentences should not be set aside as excessive in the absence of a manifest abuse of that discretion. State v. Williams , 2003-3514 (La. 12/13/04), 893 So.2d 7 ; State v. Washington , 50,337 (La. App. 2 Cir. 1/13/16), 185 So.3d 852. On review, an appellate court does not determine whether another sentence may have been more appropriate, but whether the trial court abused its discretion. State v. Jackson , 48,534 (La. App. 2 Cir.

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Related

State v. Heins
245 So. 3d 1165 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2018)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
244 So. 3d 778, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-patrick-lactapp-2017.