State v. Richard

115 So. 3d 86, 12 La.App. 5 Cir. 310, 2013 WL 1749357, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 796
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 24, 2013
DocketNos. 12-KA-310, 12-KA-311
StatusPublished
Cited by19 cases

This text of 115 So. 3d 86 (State v. Richard) 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. Richard, 115 So. 3d 86, 12 La.App. 5 Cir. 310, 2013 WL 1749357, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 796 (La. Ct. App. 2013).

Opinions

STEPHEN J. WINDHORST, Judge.

^Defendant, Lloyd Richard, was convicted of attempted second degree murder in violation of La. R.S. 14:27:30.1 (count one) and aggravated burglary in violation of La. R.S. 14:60 (count two). Defendant was sentenced on count one to 50 years at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence, and on count two to a consecutive 30-year sentence at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. Defendant appeals his convictions and sentences.

FACTS

In the early morning hours of January 26, 2008, Ms. Alonda Dennis, the victim, had finished her night shift at St. James Hospital, where she worked from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. After stopping at a grocery store, she arrived home at 7:04 a.m., and as she put her groceries away, she noticed that her kitchen knife was not in the kitchen, but thought nothing further. After eating a sandwich, she retired to bed and fell asleep, wrapped in her comforter. She was awakened by a black male | ^standing over her. The intruder wore a black skull cap on his head, a red bandana over his face, and gloves. The intruder jumped on her back and began trying to stab her with a knife. The victim jumped up, throwing her assailant off of her and dislodging the knife from his hand. She screamed and attempted to run away. He threw her to the floor, jumped on her back, and began punching her in the head. While receiving blows upon her head and struggling with her assailant, the victim asked her assailant, “Why you want to kill me?” He did not respond and continued beating her. As the struggle ensued, the victim managed to turn and observe her assailant’s face, by then uncovered, and she instantly recognized him.1

The assailant grabbed a cord from a hairdryer nearby and attempted to place it around the victim’s neck. In an effort to keep the cord off her neck, she squeezed her assailant’s genitals, and he ran from the room. The victim then locked her bedroom door, jumped out the window, and called “9-1-1” for help.

At 8:24 a.m., Deputies Evans Joseph and Donald Hawthorne of the St. James Parish Sheriffs Office responded to the call and arrived on the scene at 9202 Central Project Street in Convent, Louisiana. They observed a female standing outside an opened window in just her bra and underwear with a bloody nose and cuts on her chin and lips. The female identified herself as Alonda Dennis and told the officers that she woke up to find Lloyd Richard in her bedroom with a knife. Deputy Joseph secured the victim in the backseat of his car while Deputy Hawthorne and he searched the premises for the suspect. In the rear of the residence, a sliding door was open, which appeared to be the suspect’s entry and exit point. The officers requested medical assistance, and an ambulance soon arrived on the scene and transported the victim to the hospital.

14Lieutenant Tyrone LaFarge arrived on the scene and learned that the suspect [89]*89resided two streets over on Field Street. Lieutenant LaFarge proceeded to that residence where he spoke with Ms. Anna Canard, who also resided there. Ms. Canard informed the officers that she did not know where defendant was at the moment, but that he resided in one of the back rooms, and that they were welcome to look for him. The officers searched the residence and defendant’s room, but defendant was not present. Lieutenant LaFarge left the residence and began to search for defendant in another area. Deputy Edwin Whittington remained stationed on Field Street, where he observed a black male exit a nearby trailer and proceed toward defendant’s house. The deputy notified the lieutenant, who returned and again obtained permission from Ms. Canard to search the residence. This time, the door to defendant’s room was locked and the officers heard noise coming from inside the room. Lieutenant LaFarge ordered defendant to come out, but there was no response. Another deputy issued the order again, and the defendant opened the door and stepped out. The officers observed a scratch under defendant’s left eye and a cut on his left index finger. Defendant was detained and advised of his Miranda 2 rights.

Detective Claude Joseph Louis, Jr., obtained a taped statement from the victim and collected evidence from her residence which included one pair of white gloves with black dots, one black skull cap, one pair of red and white Nike shoes (size 9 1/2), and a 13-inch black-handled knife. The victim initially told Detective Louis that these items were not hers and did not belong in her residence. However, at trial the victim testified that the knife reeov-ered from her bedroom was her kitchen knife.

|¡iForensic DNA analysis was performed on several of these items. Ms. Deanna Lankford, an expert in the fields of forensic biology, DNA, and DNA analysis, testified that the DNA profile obtained from the black skull cap was consistent with defendant’s DNA profile. She testified that the inside of the gloves contained genetic material from which the victim and defendant could not be excluded as possible donors. The outside of the gloves also contained genetic material which was consistent with the DNA profile of the victim and an unidentified male contributor. Lastly, Ms. Lankford testified that the genetic material found in two swabs from the knife contained a minimum of two genetic profiles. At least one of the profiles was that of an unidentified male, and the victim could not be excluded as a possible donor of this genetic material.

ASSIGNMENTS OF ERROR

In defendant’s first assignment of error, he argues that his right against double jeopardy was violated because the State utilized the same evidence to support both of his convictions. Defendant contends the evidence used to prove attempted second degree murder was the same evidence used to prove the aggravated burglary element of “with the intent to commit a felony or theft therein.” He maintains that because the only felony which he was alleged to have committed in the home was attempted murder, his right against double jeopardy precludes using the evidence of the attempted murder to support the aggravated burglary intent element.3

[90]*90The Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as well as Article 1, § 15 of the Louisiana Constitution, prohibits placing a person twice in jeopardy of life or limb for the same offense. State v. Garcia, 10-755 (La.App. 5 Cir. 5/10/11), 66 So.3d 24, 27. The concept of double jeopardy, under both the federal and state constitutions, embodies the dual purpose of preventing both multiple punishments and multiple convictions for a single criminal wrong. Id. Thus, every double jeopardy analysis begins with the inquiry into whether a single offense or several offenses are involved. Id.

Louisiana courts utilize two tests in examining violations of double jeopardy. Garcia, supra at 27. The “distinct fact” or Blockburger4 test is applicable where the same act or transaction constitutes a violation of two distinct statutory provisions. Id. Using Blockburger, “the test to be applied to determine whether there are two offenses or only one is whether each provision requires proof of an additional fact that the other does not.” Id.

The other test, the “same evidence test,” is primarily relied upon by Louisiana courts. Garcia, supra. The Louisiana Supreme Court explained the “same evidence test” as follows:

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
115 So. 3d 86, 12 La.App. 5 Cir. 310, 2013 WL 1749357, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 796, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-richard-lactapp-2013.