State v. Payton

810 So. 2d 1127, 2002 WL 398692
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana
DecidedMarch 15, 2002
Docket2000-K-2899
StatusPublished
Cited by53 cases

This text of 810 So. 2d 1127 (State v. Payton) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Payton, 810 So. 2d 1127, 2002 WL 398692 (La. 2002).

Opinion

810 So.2d 1127 (2002)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Johnell PAYTON.

No. 2000-K-2899.

Supreme Court of Louisiana.

March 15, 2002.

Richard P. Ieyoub, Attorney General, Harry F. Connick, District Attorney, Nicole B. Barron, Scott D. Peebles, Counsel for Applicant.

Christopher A. Aberle, Mandeville, Counsel for Respondent.

JOHNSON, Justice.[*]

We granted the State's writ application to determine whether the court of appeal erred in finding the State failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant is a third-felony offender, in violation *1128 of the Louisiana Habitual Offender Act. After carefully reviewing the record and well-established Louisiana jurisprudence, we find the court of appeal erred in its ruling. We therefore reverse and remand for sentencing as a multiple offender.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Johnell Payton ("defendant") was charged by the District Attorney for the Parish of Orleans ("the State") with dual bills of information. The indictments alleged the defendant was guilty of: (1) two counts of armed robbery, a violation of LSA-R.S. 14:64 and (2) one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm, a violation of LSA-R.S. 14:95.1.

At his arraignment, defendant pled not guilty. After trial by a twelve-member jury in the Criminal District Court for the Parish of Orleans, defendant was found guilty of first degree robbery as to count one of the indictment and guilty of armed robbery as to count two.[1] Accordingly, the court sentenced him to twenty years at hard labor, with credit for time served on count one, and twenty-five years at hard labor, with credit served on count two. The sentences were to run concurrently.

After the trial court imposed its sentence, the State filed a multiple bill of information charging the defendant as a third-felony offender, in violation of Louisiana's Habitual Offender Act.[2] Following a hearing on the matter, the court denied the multiple bill, finding the State had not met its burden of proving the defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt in one of the specified offenses. At the multiple bill hearing, the trial judge indicated:

The [c]ourt finds that the State has failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant is a triple offender, particularly in light of the 1995 [conviction] for which there are no fingerprints on the Plea of Guilty Form to confirm that was, in fact, Johnell Payton. Therefore, the multiple-bill hearing is dismissed in this matter, and the original sentence stands as it is.

Transcript of Multiple Bill Hearing (8/24/98) at 30.

In an opinion not designated for publication, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal affirmed the defendant's conviction and sentence. The circuit court also affirmed the trial court's ruling that the State failed to meet its burden of proof concerning one of the defendant's prior convictions, but found the trial court acted without authority because the dismissal was not supported by any Code of Criminal Procedure article or statute. Therefore, it reversed the trial court's dismissal of the multiple bill. The case was remanded to the trial court for determination of whether the defendant was a third-felony offender.

We granted the State's subsequent writ application to evaluate the court of appeal's ruling. 00-K-2899 (La.9/21/01), 797 So.2d 54. As part of our evaluation, we find it appropriate to first review the factual allegations concerning both counts of the bill of information before discussing the relevant jurisprudence.

Count One

At trial, New Orleans police officer Melvin Labeaud testified that he was working a paid detail on December 23, 1997, at the Walgreen's store on Chef Menteur Highway *1129 in New Orleans East. At approximately 7:15 p.m., Ms. Martha Mitchell informed Officer Labeaud that she had been robbed in the store's parking lot by a black male wearing a black and orange jacket and dark pants. As he exited the store, Labeaud saw the suspect running from the store's parking lot. Labeaud gave chase on foot. He searched the area, with the assistance of other officers who were notified by a Walgreen's employee. However, they were unsuccessful in finding the suspect.

Ms. Mitchell testified that as she exited her car in the store's parking lot, the defendant brandished a firearm and told her to "give it up." She indicated that after handing him her purse, he turned and fled on foot as she ran into Walgreen's to seek assistance. She indicated that she observed the defendant's face for approximately twenty to thirty seconds, in good light, in the parking lot. A short time later, she identified the defendant from a photo lineup as her assailant.

Count Two

Gwendolyn Mackey, a security guard at the Winn Dixie Store located at 500 North Carrollton Avenue in New Orleans, testified that on December 26, 1997 she received word that a customer was robbed at gunpoint in the store's parking lot. As Mackey exited the store to the parking lot, she immediately noticed the victim screaming and pointing to a man walking out of the parking lot. The victim, Sister Francis Regis (Merianne Feise), told Mackey the robber wore army fatigues, a white shirt, and boots. As Mackey followed the suspect in her car, her partner followed him on foot. The officers cornered the suspect and took him back to the store. Upon seeing the suspect, the victim identified him as the robber. The officers retraced the suspect's path and found the victim's purse beside a tree approximately one-half block from the store. After the suspect was identified, police officers inspected his car, which he abandoned prior to walking out of the parking lot. The police identified the car as stolen, found a handgun on the front passenger seat, and placed the suspect under arrest.

Sister Francis Regis testified that as she opened her car door, a black male placed a gun to her head and demanded her purse. She indicated that after handing him the purse, he walked to his car and she screamed for help. As a crowd gathered, the suspect exited his car and left on foot. She testified that she described her assailant's physical characteristics and clothing to the store's security guards. Approximately ten minutes later, the officers returned the suspect to the store and she identified him as the defendant.

LAW AND ANALYSIS

The State alleges that both the district court and court of appeal erred in finding the evidence presented was insufficient to prove the defendant was a third-felony offender. The State argues the Fourth Circuit failed to follow its own jurisprudence as well as the jurisprudence of this Court. Specifically, the State argues the court of appeal ignored its holding in State v. Henry, 96-1280 (La.App. 4 Cir. 3/11/98), 709 So.2d 322 and our holding in State v. Lindsey, 99-3256 (La.10/17/00), 770 So.2d 339. In addressing the State's allegations, we shall discuss each case in turn.

In Henry, the defendant was found guilty of the October, 1994 simple burglary of an inhabited dwelling. After conviction, the State charged defendant as a fourth-offender. However, defendant contended there were no grounds for such because of insufficient proof of his identity in a 1991 simple escape charge. In rebuttal, the State introduced a certified copy of the 1991 conviction with the same defendant's Bureau of Identification number, physical *1130 description, birth date, and social security number. See Henry, 709 So.2d at 326.

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Bluebook (online)
810 So. 2d 1127, 2002 WL 398692, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-payton-la-2002.