State v. Scott

939 So. 2d 462, 2006 WL 2053123
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedJuly 25, 2006
Docket06-KA-134
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 939 So. 2d 462 (State v. Scott) 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. Scott, 939 So. 2d 462, 2006 WL 2053123 (La. Ct. App. 2006).

Opinion

939 So.2d 462 (2006)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Ben H. SCOTT.

No. 06-KA-134.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Fifth Circuit.

July 25, 2006.

*464 Paul D. Connick, Jr., District Attorney, Twenty-Fourth Judicial District, Parish of Jefferson, Terry M. Boudreaux, Juliet Clark, Kenneth Bordelon, Assistant District Attorneys, Gretna, LA, for Plaintiff/Appellee.

Margaret S. Sollars, Attorney at Law, Louisiana Appellate Project, Thibodaux, LA, for Defendant/Appellant.

Panel composed of Judges EDWARD A. DUFRESNE, JR., WALTER J. ROTHSCHILD, and FREDERICKA HOMBERG WICKER.

EDWARD A. DUFRESNE, JR., Chief Judge.

The Jefferson Parish District Attorney filed a bill of information on February 20, *465 2004, charging defendant, Ben Scott, with armed robbery in violation of LSA-R.S. 14:64.[1] He pled not guilty and filed several pretrial motions including motions to suppress evidence, confession, and identifications, all of which were denied after a hearing. The state subsequently amended the bill of information and changed the charge against defendant from armed robbery to first degree robbery in violation of LSA-R.S. 14:64.1. Defendant entered a plea of not guilty to this amended charge. The matter proceeded to trial before a twelve person jury on March 29 and 30, 2005. After considering the evidence presented, the jury found defendant guilty as charged. On August 12, 2005, the trial judge sentenced defendant to serve forty years in the Department of Corrections. Defendant now appeals.[2]

FACTS

At approximately 10:20 p.m. on January 30, 2004, Sandi Roe was working at the Shell gas station on Lapalco and Woodmere when a man entered the store and announced he was robbing the store. Ms. Roe saw the man's hand resting on what she believed to be the butt of a gun in his waistband. The man handed Ms. Roe a clear plastic bag and told her he wanted cigarettes, the brands of which he specified, and lighters. He also demanded money from the register, which Ms. Roe dumped into the bag. He then instructed Ms. Roe to give him the bag, and he exited the store.

After defendant left, Ms. Roe called 911 from the store phone. When there was no answer, she called 911 from her cell phone and went outside where she observed defendant getting into a small dark blue Toyota-like truck. While Ms. Roe was outside, a customer, Cary Singletary, arrived. Ms. Roe told Mr. Singletary that she had just been robbed and pointed out the truck in which the perpetrator was leaving. Mr. Singletary followed the truck until the truck became stuck in the mud. Mr. Singletary then obtained the truck's license plate number and returned to the Shell station, at which time the police were arriving on the scene.

As Mr. Singletary arrived at the Shell station, he again spotted the truck. The police pursued the truck until it crashed in the Woodmere subdivision. The perpetrator fled the truck and was apprehended following a brief foot pursuit. Ms. Roe was subsequently brought to the scene of the apprehension where she positively identified the suspect as the person who robbed her at the Shell station. Additionally, Mr. Singletary identified the suspect at the scene of the apprehension as the person driving the truck he followed as it was leaving the Shell station.

Defendant's truck was secured. An inventory of its contents revealed scattered cigarettes, lighters, and cartons of cigarettes and currency inside a clear garbage bag. Ms. Roe identified these items as things taken from the Shell station during the robbery. The items had a value of $1,497.98.

After his arrest, defendant gave a statement to police admitting his involvement in the robbery. At trial, defendant testified he went to the Shell station on the night of the incident to buy gas and a drink. He stated he parked his truck and was in the process of figuring out how much money he needed and how much he had when a *466 man armed with a gun approached his truck and carjacked him. Defendant stated the man told him where to drive and then jumped out of the truck when it got stuck in the mud. Defendant explained he ran from the police because of his felony record. He further testified he gave his inculpatory statement out of fear and intimidation.

ASSIGNMENT OF ERROR NUMBER ONE

In his first assigned error, defendant challenges the trial court's denial of his motion to suppress identifications, claiming that the one-on-one identifications were unduly suggestive and further that there was a high likelihood of misidentification. Defendant also challenges the trial court's denial of his motion to suppress statement, asserting that it was not freely and voluntarily given. For the reasons which follow, we find no error in the trial court's denial of defendant's motions to suppress.

Motion to Suppress Identifications

A defendant challenging an identification procedure must prove that the identification was suggestive and there was a substantial likelihood of misidentification as a result of the identification process. State v. Thibodeaux, 98-1673 (La.9/8/99), 750 So.2d 916, 932, cert. denied, 529 U.S. 1112, 120 S.Ct. 1969, 146 L.Ed.2d 800 (2000). It is the likelihood of misidentification that violates due process, not the mere existence of suggestiveness. State v. Hurd, 05-258 (La.App. 5 Cir. 11/29/05), 917 So.2d 567, 570.

Fairness is the standard of review for identification procedures, and reliability is the linchpin in determining the admissibility of identification testimony. Manson v. Brathwaite, 432 U.S. 98, 97 S.Ct. 2243, 2253, 53 L.Ed.2d 140 (1977); State v. Hurd, 917 So.2d at 570. Factors to consider in assessing the reliability of an identification include: (1) the witness' opportunity to view the criminal at the time of the crime, (2) the witness' degree of attention, (3) the accuracy of his prior description of the criminal, (4) the level of certainty demonstrated at the confrontation, and (5) the time between the crime and the confrontation. Manson v. Brathwaite, 97 S.Ct. at 2253.

Generally, one-on-one identifications are not favored. However, such an identification procedure is permissible under certain circumstances. For example, one-on-one identifications are justified when the accused is apprehended within a relatively short period of time after the occurrence of the crime and has been returned to the scene for immediate identification. State v. Winfrey, 97-427 (La.App. 5 Cir. 10/28/97), 703 So.2d 63, 69, writ denied, 98-264 (La.6/19/98), 719 So.2d 481. Such prompt confrontations between the defendant and the victim promote fairness by ensuring the reliability of the identification and the expeditious release of innocent suspects. State v. Clennon, 98-1370 (La.App. 5 Cir. 6/30/99), 738 So.2d 161, 164.

In the present case, the victim testified she was brought to the scene where defendant was apprehended and asked whether she could identify the suspect as the perpetrator. The victim remained in the back seat of the police car while the deputy rolled down her window. She stated she observed defendant standing at a distance, accompanied by a police officer, with his hands behind his back and headlights shining on him.[3] The victim made a *467 positive identification of defendant as the perpetrator within thirty minutes of the robbery.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
939 So. 2d 462, 2006 WL 2053123, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-scott-lactapp-2006.