State v. Perret

563 So. 2d 459, 1990 WL 75404
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMay 30, 1990
Docket89 KA 0954, 89 KW 0074
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 563 So. 2d 459 (State v. Perret) 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. Perret, 563 So. 2d 459, 1990 WL 75404 (La. Ct. App. 1990).

Opinion

563 So.2d 459 (1990)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
William S. "Corky" PERRET.

Nos. 89 KA 0954, 89 KW 0074.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, First Circuit.

May 30, 1990.

*461 Douglas H. Greenburg, Dist. Atty., Houma, for plaintiff and appellant.

Risely C. Triche, Napoleonville, for defendant and appellee.

Before COVINGTON, C.J., WATKINS, J., and DOHERTY,[*] J. Pro Tem.

LEWIS S. DOHERTY, Judge Pro Tem.

Defendant, William S. "Corky" Perret, was charged in a single grand jury indictment with five counts of malfeasance in office (counts one through five) and one count of public intimidation, violations of LSA-R.S. 14:134 and 122, respectively. After entering not guilty pleas to each of the charges, defendant filed several motions to quash the indictment as set forth below.

On August 15, 1988, defendant filed a motion to quash the indictment on the basis of improper venue as to each of the six counts in the indictment. Thereafter, on October 6, 1988, defendant filed two other motions to quash the indictment. In one of those October 6 motions, defendant claimed that the indictment contained disjunctive and alternative allegations and charges which violated his constitutional right under La. Const. Art. I, § 13, to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusations against him. In the other October 6 motion, defendant claimed that counts one and two constituted only one offense, that counts three, four and five constituted another single offense and that prosecuting him for both counts one and two and/or for each of counts three, four and five would deprive him of his state and federal constitutional protection against double jeopardy.

At a hearing conducted on October 14, 1988, which addressed those motions, the district court quashed all counts of the indictment, except count one. Thereafter, on October 31, 1988, defendant filed another motion to quash, alleging the unconstitutionality of LSA-R.S. 14:134 and the failure of the indictment, together with the state's answers to defendant's request for a bill of *462 particulars, to charge an offense punishable under a valid statute. Subsequently, on December 6, 1988, the district court conducted a hearing in regard to the October 31 motion and, at that time, denied the motion.

Through the instant appeal (KA 89 0954), the state seeks review of the district court's rulings which resulted in the quashing of counts two through six. Defendant filed an application for supervisory writs (KW 89 0074) pertaining only to the denial of his October 31 motion to quash by which the district court refused to quash count one, the sole remaining count in the indictment. This Court consolidated the writ application[1] and the state's appeal.

In its appeal, the state urges three assignments of error:

1. The district court erred by granting defendant's motion to quash count two of the indictment on the ground of double jeopardy.

2. The district court erred by consolidating counts three, four and five into one count, count three, on the ground that the conduct charged in each of the consolidated counts was part of the same transaction.

3. The district court erred by granting defendant's motion to quash the consolidated count three and count six on the ground of improper venue.

In his writ application, defendant urges two assignments of error:

1. The district court erred by denying defendant's motion to quash the indictment on the ground that the malfeasance in office statute (LSA-R.S. 14:134) is unconstitutionally vague and indefinite.

2. The district court erred by denying defendant's motion to quash the indictment on the ground that the indictment, together with the state's answers to defendant's request for a bill of particulars, failed to charge a crime punishable under a valid statute.

The motion to quash is essentially a mechanism by which to raise pre-trial pleas of defense, i.e., those matters which do not go to the merits of the charge. See LSA-C.Cr.P. arts. 531-534. It is treated much like an exception of no cause of action in a civil suit. State v. Perez, 464 So.2d 737, 739 (La.1985) (citations omitted).

In considering a motion to quash, a court must accept as true the facts contained in the bill of information and in the bills of particulars and determine, as a matter of law and from the face of the pleadings, whether or not a crime has been charged. State v. Perez, 464 So.2d at 739. While evidence may be adduced, such may not include a defense on the merits.[2]Id. The question of factual guilt or innocence of the offense charged is not raised by the motion to quash. See Id. at 740 (citations omitted).

LSA-R.S. 14:134 provides, in pertinent part, as follows:

Malfeasance in office is committed when any public officer or public employee shall:
(1) Intentionally refuse or fail to perform any duty lawfully required of him, as such officer or employee; or
(2) Intentionally perform any such duty in an unlawful manner; or
(3) Knowingly permit any other public officer or public employee, under his authority, to intentionally refuse or fail to perform any duty lawfully required of him, or to perform any such duty in an unlawful manner.
* * * * * *

Before a public officer or employee can be charged with malfeasance in office under LSA-R.S. 14:134, there must be a statute or provision of law which delineates an affirmative duty upon the officer or employee. Id. at 741. The duty must be expressly imposed by law upon the officer or employee because he is entitled to know exactly what conduct is expected *463 of him in his official capacity and what conduct will subject him to criminal charges. Id. When a public official takes the oath of office pursuant to LSA-Const. Art. X, § 30, swearing to uphold the laws of Louisiana, that oath imposes upon him a specific duty not to obstruct or interfere with the execution of those laws. Id. at 742.

In charging counts one through five, the indictment (as amended) began with a charge that, in committing each of the charged offenses of malfeasance in office, defendant had refused and failed to perform duties lawfully required of him as a public officer (assistant secretary) of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and had instructed and permitted other public officers and employees of the Department under his authority to fail to perform "duties lawfully required." The indictment then set forth additional allegations relating to counts one through five as follows:

(1) As to count one, that defendant, "knowing and having reason to believe" that Lawrence Verdin, captain of the M/V "Little Sarah" possessed undersize oysters in excess of that allowed by LSA-R.S. 56:433, instructed agents Allen Galloway and Darryl Champagne not to issue Department of Wildlife and Fisheries offense citations to Verdin for possession of oysters in violation of LSA-R.S. 56:433.

(2) As to count two, that after having instructed Galloway and Champagne not to issue the citations to Verdin, defendant failed to instruct Agents Galloway and Champagne to confiscate the remaining oyster cargo aboard the M/V "Little Sarah" or to instruct the agents to take action to investigate the remaining oyster cargo so as to insure that unlawful amounts of undersize oysters were not being possessed illegally.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
563 So. 2d 459, 1990 WL 75404, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-perret-lactapp-1990.