State v. Sigur

578 So. 2d 143
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedNovember 26, 1990
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 578 So. 2d 143 (State v. Sigur) 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. Sigur, 578 So. 2d 143 (La. Ct. App. 1990).

Opinion

578 So.2d 143 (1990)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Jon SIGUR.

KA 89 2141.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, First Circuit.

November 26, 1990.
Rehearing Denied March 27, 1991.
Writ Denied June 28, 1991.

Donald Camouche, Dist. Atty., Donaldsonville, for appellee State.

Anthony Marabella, Jr., Baton Rouge, for appellant Jon Sigur.

Before EDWARDS, WATKINS and LeBLANC, JJ.

EDWARDS, Judge.

Jon Sigur was charged by bill of information with possession of cocaine, a violation of LSA-R.S. 40:967(C). After trial by jury, defendant was found guilty as charged. The trial court sentenced defendant to imprisonment at hard labor for a term of five *144 years. Defendant has appealed, urging eight assignments of error:

1. The trial court erred by allowing evidence of other narcotics into evidence and "by not requiring that defendant be given notice,"

2. The trial court erred by allowing the offense report to be introduced into evidence,

3. The trial court erred by allowing the initial offense report into evidence "without prior notice,"

4. The trial court erred by allowing one yellow tablet to be introduced into evidence,

5. The trial court erred by allowing the marijuana to be introduced into evidence,

6. The trial court allowed the prosecution to make prejudicial argument, introducing facts not in evidence, during closing arguments,

7. The trial court erred by not granting defendant's motion for new trial after a finding that the jury had been prejudiced by extraneous information, and

8. Defendant failed to receive effective assistance of counsel as guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution and Article I, Section 13, of the Louisiana Constitution.

Assignment of error number six was not briefed on appeal and, therefore, is considered abandoned. Uniform Rules— Courts of Appeal, Rule 2-12.4.

FACTS

During the early predawn hours of April 13, 1988, State Trooper Douglas W. Robertson was on routine patrol in his police unit on U.S. Highway 61 in Ascension Parish. According to Robertson, he observed a black 1975 Mercedes weaving from the right lane of the highway onto the shoulder of the highway, crossing a clearly visible white line (demarcating the right lane of the road and the shoulder) by a distance of about one-half a car width; he observed the vehicle do this several times. Thereafter, Robertson stopped the Mercedes; and defendant, who was driving the Mercedes, exited the car.

Robertson testified that, when defendant walked toward him after exiting the vehicle, he observed that defendant staggered slightly. When defendant got close to Robertson, Robertson advised defendant that he was stopped because of his weaving onto the shoulder of the highway. Defendant told Robertson that he had been working all day and that he was tired and very nervous. At that time, Robertson noticed that defendant's speech was slurred, that his eyes were red and glassy, and that he had a moderate odor of alcohol on his breath.

Robertson testified that he then proceeded to administer field sobriety tests to defendant. During the initial test, a horizontal gaze nystagmus test, defendant's eyes did not exhibit smooth pursuit and were jerking. Next, on a walk and turn test, defendant did not walk heel-to-toe as instructed, stepped off the line several times, and was unable to remain on the line. When called to perform the balance test, defendant refused. At that point, Robertson advised defendant that he was under arrest for DWI.

According to Robertson, when he advised defendant of his arrest for DWI, defendant began to move back away from him. Robertson then reached out and grabbed defendant's shirt at the right shoulder, and he told defendant to put his hands on the police unit and that he was going to pat defendant down. At that point, defendant swung at Robertson with his left hand and pulled away from Robertson's grasp. When defendant swung, Robertson ducked and swung toward defendant's punch with his flashlight to block the punch. In doing so, Robertson's flashlight struck defendant once in the back of the head.

Robertson testified that defendant fell down in front of his police unit; but, before he could get in position to cuff defendant, defendant jumped up and ran to the front side of the unit. There, defendant ran his hands down in and out of his front pockets and threw paper money and two small, white, plastic bags in the air. The money *145 and the bags landed on the ground in the grass on the shoulder of the roadway toward the front side of the police unit. Defendant then ran to the passenger side of his car and began yelling to his passenger to get out of the car. Fearing that the passenger might exit the car with a weapon or hand defendant a weapon, Robertson drew his service revolver, pointed it at defendant, and told defendant to raise his hands and come over to his police unit. Defendant complied. Robertson cuffed defendant, put defendant in the back seat of his police unit and called for police backup.

Robertson testified that he then went to the side of his unit and picked up the bags and money defendant had thrown. Next, Robertson ordered Paul Gray, defendant's passenger, to exit defendant's car. Gray cooperated, stepped back to Robertson's unit and placed his hands on the unit as Robertson requested. Shortly thereafter, Trooper Robert Drake arrived at the scene and took custody of defendant and transported him to the Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office. At that point, Robertson radioed State Police Troop A to send a wrecker to tow defendant's car.

Robertson testified that, in the meantime, Gray told him that he was cold and indicated that he wanted to sit in Robertson's police unit. Robertson told Gray he could do so but only after Robertson patted him down for weapons. Robertson patted Gray down and asked that Gray remove his boots. When Gray removed his boots, Robertson asked that Gray turn the boots upside down and shake them. When Gray complied, a small plastic bag of suspected marijuana fell out of one of the boots. Robertson seized the suspected substance, advised Gray he was under arrest for possession of marijuana, cuffed him and placed him inside the back seat area of his police unit.

Robertson testified that, when the wrecker arrived at the scene, it towed defendant's car to the Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office. At the sheriff's office, defendant consented to a search of his car. Subsequently, during the search of defendant's car, Robertson seized a yellow tablet which he found inside the car.

At trial, the state introduced (without objection) State Exhibit S-5, a scientific analysis report of the Louisiana State Police Crime Laboratory. The report revealed that the two small, white, plastic bags contained cocaine, that the plastic bag of suspected marijuana (seized from Paul Gray) contained marijuana and that the yellow pill (seized from defendant's car) contained diazepam.

Defendant presented the testimony of three witnesses at his trial. Those witnesses were Patrick F. Sigur and Carolyn Sigur, his parents, and Paul Gray.

Gray testified that, after he and defendant were stopped and after defendant exited his car, defendant was standing between the rear bumper of his car and the trooper's unit. From inside defendant's car, Gray listened to and observed what was happening between defendant and the trooper. During the field sobriety tests, the trooper asked defendant to "walk the line." At that point, it appeared to Gray that defendant took a couple of steps and "started trying to move forward," when the trooper "grabbed at" defendant.

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Related

State v. Berkeley
788 So. 2d 647 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2001)
State v. Hilton
764 So. 2d 1027 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2000)
State v. Gay
616 So. 2d 1290 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1993)
State v. Sigur
582 So. 2d 1303 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1991)

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578 So. 2d 143, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-sigur-lactapp-1990.