State v. Raymond

718 So. 2d 1010, 1998 WL 526635
Louisiana Court of Appeal·Decided August 25, 1998·No. 98-KA-119·Published·Cited by 16 cases

Opinion

718 So.2d 1010 (1998)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Reginald RAYMOND.

No. 98-KA-119.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Fifth Circuit.

August 25, 1998.

*1011 William R. Campbell, Jr., New Orleans, for Appellant.

Paul D. Connick, Jr., District Attorney, Ellen S. Fantaci, Assistant District Attorney, Research & Appeals, Gretna, for Appellee.

Before GAUDIN, WICKER and CANNELLA, JJ.

CANNELLA, Judge.

Defendant, Reginald Raymond, appeals his sentence as a fourth felony offender. We vacate the habitual offender adjudication and sentence and remand.

This case is before us after a remand. In his first appeal, we affirmed defendant's convictions of two counts of distribution of cocaine, a violation of La. R.S. 40:967 A. We vacated his habitual offender conviction and sentence for failure of proof. See: State v. Raymond, 97-81 (La.App. 5th Cir. 5/28/97), 695 So.2d 1039. We will not reiterate the substantive facts here because they are set out in the prior appeal.

On June 6, 1996, defendant was convicted of two counts of distribution of cocaine. The crimes were committed on August 12, 1994 (count one) and August 15, 1994 (count two). On June 26, 1996, the state filed an Habitual Offender Bill of Information pursuant to La. R.S. 15:529.1. On the same day that the bill of information was filed, defendant denied the allegations and the trial judge conducted a hearing on the habitual offender charge. After considering the evidence, the trial judge adjudicated defendant a fourth felony offender and, on count one, sentenced him to serve seventy-five years imprisonment at hard labor, without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence. On count two, the trial judge sentenced defendant to serve ten years imprisonment at hard labor. The trial judge specified that the two sentences were to run concurrently.

After we remanded the case, the trial judge conducted another habitual offender hearing on November 12, 1997. The state introduced certified copies of three convictions, including the waiver of rights forms, the minute entries and bills of information for district court case numbers 85-1301B, 84-2168J, and 93-2704G. The trial judge vacated both of defendant's original sentences and sentenced defendant to life imprisonment, without benefit of parole, probation or suspension of sentence. The trial judge did not specify which count he used as the basis for the enhanced sentence. After defendant's objection, the trial judge vacated *1012 the life sentence and imposed ninety-nine years imprisonment at hard labor, without benefits of probation, parole or suspension of sentence. Immediately following defendant's second objection to the sentence, the trial judge sentenced defendant to eighty-five years imprisonment at hard labor. After another objection, the trial judge sentenced defendant to serve seventy-five years imprisonment at hard labor, without benefits of probation, parole or suspension of sentence.

The record contains a document entitled "SENTENCING," which does not reflect the date that it was filled out, nor the date that it was filed into the record. However, the record reflects that the document was microfilmed for the record on November 17, 1997. Said document reflects that the trial court vacated defendant's two first imposed sentences (count one for seventy-five years and count two for ten years) and imposed a single sentence of life imprisonment, without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence. However, the transcript, minute entry and commitment reflect that defendant was sentenced to seventy-five years imprisonment at hard labor without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence.

On appeal, defendant contends that the sentence imposed by the trial court is illegal because it is not determinate, not specific and because the record is ambiguous. In his second assignment of error, defendant asserts that the sentence imposed by the trial court is illegal because it is not identified with either of the two counts of which defendant was convicted.

After our review under error patent, we find that the state failed to prove the date of discharge for the second felony used to enhance the sentence for count one of the distribution of cocaine charge. Thus, we vacate the habitual offender adjudication and sentence and remand for further proceedings.

Defendant complains that the trial judge erred in the sentence because he failed to specify which of the June 6, 1996 convictions was being enhanced, for purposes of the habitual offender bill of information. Thus, he contends that his sentence is not determinate as required by La.C.Cr.P. art. 879. The state also notes this error. In addition, the state also points out the possibility that the trial judge applied the incorrect sentencing provision. Specifically, the state notes that the trial judge may have applied the current sentencing provision applicable to quadruple offenders, rather than the sentencing provision that was in effect at the time that the defendant committed the instant offense.

First, we note that, in the first appeal of the convictions, this court did not vacate or otherwise modify defendant's ten year sentence on count two. Therefore, that conviction and sentence are final. La.C.Cr.P. art. 922.[1] Accordingly, the trial judge was without authority to vacate the ten year sentence.

Next, this court only remanded for possible re-adjudication of the habitual offender conviction. Since the conviction and sentence on count two was final, the trial judge could only base the habitual offender conviction and enhanced sentence on count one. There is an inconsistency in the record as to the sentence in the document titled "Sentencing." However, the critical documents, the transcript and commitment, provide the correct sentence. Since the transcript always applies when there are discrepancies in the record, this sentence is determinate. See: State v. Polkey, 95-564 (La.App. 5th Cir. 1/17/96), 669 So.2d 2, 3.

Third, we note that, under the law in effect at the time defendant committed the two drug offenses, the statute provided a sentencing range of thirty years imprisonment at hard labor to life. The habitual offender statute, La. R.S. 15:529.1, was amended numerous times since it was first enacted in 1956. The statute in effect on August 12 and August 15, 1994 was enacted in 1993. La. R.S. 15:529.1(A)(3)(b) provided as follows:

(a) The person shall be sentenced to imprisonment for the fourth or subsequent felony for a determinate term not less than the longest prescribed for a first conviction *1013 but in no event less than twenty years and not more than his natural life; or
(b) If the fourth or subsequent felony and two of the prior felonies involved a violation of R.S. 14:34, R.S. 14:62.1, R.S. 14:62.2, R.S. 14:62.3, R.S. 14:65, R.S. 14:110(B), or of any crime punishable by imprisonment for more than twelve years, the person shall be imprisoned for the remainder of his natural life, without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence.

In this case, the fourth (underlying) felony was for distribution of cocaine, a violation of La. R.S. 40:967(A). At the time the defendant committed the instant offense, the penalty for distribution of cocaine was five to thirty years imprisonment. La. R.S. 40:967(B)(1). The other three felony convictions were for violations of La. R.S. 14:65, La. R.S.14:52, and La. R.S. 14:62.3. While two of the felonies are listed in R.S.15:529.1(3)(b), th

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