State v. Simmons

781 So. 2d 821, 2001 WL 253920
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedFebruary 28, 2001
Docket00-KA-1037
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 781 So. 2d 821 (State v. Simmons) 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. Simmons, 781 So. 2d 821, 2001 WL 253920 (La. Ct. App. 2001).

Opinion

781 So.2d 821 (2001)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Albert SIMMONS.

No. 00-KA-1037.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Fifth Circuit.

February 28, 2001.

*822 Paul D. Connick, Jr., District Attorney, Terry M. Boudreaux, Alison Wallis, Donald Rowan, Assistant District Attorneys, Gretna, Counsel for the state.

Bertha M. Hillman, Hillman Law Firm, Thibodaux, Counsel for defendant-appellant.

Court composed of Judges SUSAN M. CHEHARDY, CLARENCE E. McMANUS and JAMES C. GULOTTA, Pro Tempore.

McMANUS, Judge.

On December 7, 1998, the Jefferson Parish District Attorney filed a bill of information charging Defendant, Albert Simmons, with one count of carnal knowledge of a juvenile in violation of LSA-R.S. 14:80. The bill of information alleged that the incident occurred between January 1996 and December 1997. The bill of information was amended on July 12, 1999 to allege that the incident took place between July 1998 and September 1998.

On December 28, 1998, Defendant pled not guilty at his arraignment. On July 27, 1999, a six-member jury was selected and trial was held. At the conclusion of the trial, the jury found Defendant guilty as charged.

On September 24, 1999, the trial court sentenced Defendant to imprisonment at hard labor for a term of two years. On September 24, 1999, the Jefferson Parish District Attorney filed a multiple offender bill of information alleging that Defendant is a second felony offender. The trial court continued the hearing on the multiple offender bill until February 18, 2000. The record does not contain a finding on the multiple offender bill.

On October 19, 1999, Defendant filed a motion for reconsideration of sentence. *823 The trial court did not rule on defendant's motion to reconsider and continued the motion until the completion of this appeal.[1]

FACTS[2]

On September 14, 1998, K.G.[3] passed out while attending school at Helen Cox Middle School. K.G.'s mother, Sonia Robinson, left work and took K.G. to the hospital. At the hospital, K.G. and her mother were informed that K.G. was pregnant. K.G. told her mother that Defendant, who was a neighbor, was the father.

When Robinson and her daughter returned home from the hospital, Robinson confronted Defendant and asked him his age, which he admitted was 20 years of age. She then asked Defendant if he was aware of K.G.'s age and he responded that he was not. Robinson then called the police and reported that Defendant had slept with her daughter. The police began an investigation and ultimately arrested Defendant.

ASSIGNMENT OF ERROR NUMBER ONE

Defendant argues that his conviction should be overturned because the State failed to present sufficient evidence to support his conviction for carnal knowledge of a juvenile. The State responds that based on the evidence presented, a rational trier of fact could have concluded that Defendant committed the crime of carnal knowledge of a juvenile.

The standard for reviewing the sufficiency of evidence is set forth in Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 318-320, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 2788-2790, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979). In Jackson, the Supreme Court explained that when assessing the sufficiency of the evidence, the reviewing court must determine whether, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, a rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. at 318-320, 99 S.Ct. at 2788-2790; State v. Rosiere, 488 So.2d 965, 968 (La.1986). Under Jackson, the standard for testing the sufficiency of evidence requires that a conviction be based on proof sufficient for any rational trier of fact, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, to find the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. at 318-320, 99 S.Ct. at 2788-2790; State v. Rosiere, 488 So.2d at 968; State v. Lassere, 95-1009 (La.App. 5 Cir. 10/1/96), 683 So.2d 812, 816.

In the present case, Defendant was convicted of carnal knowledge of a juvenile in violation of LSA-R.S. 14:80, which defines carnal knowledge of a juvenile as follows:

A. Carnal knowledge of a juvenile is committed when:
(1) A person over the age of seventeen has sexual intercourse, with consent, with any person of the age of twelve years or more, but under the age of seventeen years, when there is an age difference of greater than two years between the two persons and the victim is not the spouse of the offender; or
(2) A person over the age of seventeen has anal or oral sexual intercourse, with consent, with a person of the age of twelve years or more, but under the age *824 of seventeen years, when there is an age difference of greater than two years between the two persons.
B. Lack of knowledge of the juvenile's age shall not be a defense. Emission is not necessary; and penetration, however slight, is sufficient to complete the crime.

The State sought to prove that K.G. was under 17 years of age at the time she had sex with Defendant and there was an age difference between K.G. and Defendant of more than two years.

At trial, the State called the victim's mother, Sonia Robinson. She testified that, on September 14, 1998, she left work to pick her daughter, K.G., up at school and take her to the hospital. At the hospital, Robinson and her daughter were informed that K.G. was pregnant. Robinson and her daughter returned home and Robinson confronted Defendant, identified as the father by K.G. She questioned Defendant about his age and whether he knew that K.G. was pregnant. She testified that Defendant did know that K.G. was pregnant and that he was 20 years of age.

Later that same evening, Robinson spoke with Defendant and Defendant's mother outside of her home. Robinson testified that Defendant said that what happened to her daughter was a mistake. Robinson further testified that Defendant did not deny sleeping with K.G. After speaking with Defendant and his mother, Robinson called the police.

On cross-examination, Robinson was asked whether Defendant ever admitted to having slept with her daughter and she stated that he had not admitted to sleeping with her daughter. Defendant sought to impeach this testimony by producing a statement that Robinson had given to the police stating that Defendant had admitted to sleeping with her daughter. Robinson testified that she told the police that she knew Defendant had been previously convicted of carnal knowledge of a juvenile.

The State then called K.G. She testified that she was born on April 24, 1982. She lived in the same apartment complex with Defendant. She was talking to Defendant in March or April of 1998, and she and Defendant talked about her approaching sixteenth birthday.

K.G. and Defendant began having sex in June of 1998 and K.G. continued to have sex with him until August of 1998. She testified that the relationship had resulted in her pregnancy; she testified that Defendant was the father of the baby. K.G. further testified that Defendant was the only man she had ever slept with.

On cross-examination, K.G. testified that she took a pregnancy test in Defendant's apartment two days prior to being taken to the hospital. She further testified that Defendant offered to take her to have an abortion. Defense questioned K.G.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
781 So. 2d 821, 2001 WL 253920, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-simmons-lactapp-2001.