State v. St. Romain

292 So. 2d 531
Supreme Court of Louisiana·Decided March 18, 1974·No. 54435·Published·Cited by 7 cases

Opinion

292 So.2d 531 (1974)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Tyrone ST. ROMAIN and Benny Gremillion.

No. 54435.

Supreme Court of Louisiana.

March 18, 1974.

William J. Guste, Jr., Atty. Gen., Mitchell B. Lansden, Sp. Counsel to Atty. Gen., Baton Rouge, Barbara Rutledge, Asst. Atty. Gen., Eddie Knoll, Dist. Atty., Jeannette Theriot Knoll, Asst. Dist. Atty., for plaintiff-relator.

John M. Mamoulides, Dist. Atty., Abbott J. Reeves, Sp. Asst. Dist. Atty., amicus curiae for State of La.

Harold J. Brouillette, John Taylor Bennett, Marksville, Riddle & Bennett, for defendants-respondents.

John F. Rau, Jr., Harvey, Robert I. Broussard, Gretna, Samuel S. Dalton, New Orleans, amicus curiae for Criminal Bar Assoc. of Jefferson Parish.

CALOGERO, Justice.

On January 10, 1974 defendants, Tyrone St. Romain and Benny Gremillion, were *532 charged by Bill of Information in the Twelfth Judicial District Court with having violated La.R.S. 40:966, subd. A, distribution of marijuana, a controlled dangerous substance as defined in the Louisiana Uniform Controlled Dangerous Substance Law, R.S. 40:961 et seq. Trial was assigned for February 1, 1974.

On that date the District Court of its own volition refused to empanel a twelve man jury to try the case, holding that the offense of distribution of marijuana was a misdemeanor chargeable only under R.S. 40:971(A)(1). The State's argument that the offense was a felony chargeable under R.S. 40:966, subd. A(1) was rejected by the District Court because, in that Court's opinion, R.S. 40:966, subd. B(2), the penalty provision for violation of R.S. 40:966, subd. A(1) (distribution of marijuana) had been repealed by the adoption of Act 207 of 1973.

The State, preferring not to accept the trial court's ruling and proceed with the trial of the case as a misdemeanor under R.S. 40:971A(1), requested and was granted a Stay Order so that it could apply to this Court for supervisory writs. On February 15, 1971 this Court granted the State's application for writs of certiorari, prohibition, mandamus and for a Stay Order and ordered the matter set for argument on February 25, 1974, because of the importance of the issues involved and because of the advisability of a thorough, yet speedy resolution of the issue presented in this litigation, viz, whether 40:966, subd. B(2) the felony penalty for distribution of marijuana and other hallucinogens, has been removed from the law by virtue of the passage of Act 207 of 1973.

During the pendency of this case, motions of the Jefferson Parish Criminal Bar Association and the Attorney General of the State of Louisiana to be allowed to file amici curiae briefs, in support, respectively, of the positions of defendant and of the District Attorney for the Parish of Avoyelles, were granted.[1]

The Louisiana Legislature, recognizing the dangers the drug problem presents to the health and safety of the people of the State of Louisiana, by Act 634 of 1972 adopted the Uniform Controlled Dangerous Substances Law to comprise Part X of Chapter 4 of Title 40 of the Revised Statutes of 1950, now R.S. 40:961 et seq. Section 961 defines the terms used in the law. Section 962 states that the substances listed in section 964 are controlled, and gives the State Board of Health the authority to add a substance to those to be controlled depending on its potential for abuse. Section 963 states that there are five schedules of controlled substances, to be known as Schedules I, II, III, IV and V, and gives the standards by which the State Board of Health will add a new substance to one or the other of such schedules. Section 964 lists the controlled substances and classifies each under one of the five schedules.

Sections 966 through and including 970 describe the prohibited acts with respect to the substances in each schedule, respectively, and provide penalties for each prohibited act. These sections make it unlawful for any person knowingly or intentionally

—To produce, manufacture, distribute or dispense or possess with intent to produce, manufacture, distribute, or dispense, a controlled dangerous substance classified in the respective schedules;
or
—To create, distribute, or possess with intent to distribute, a counterfeit controlled dangerous substance classified in the respective schedules;
or
—To knowingly (as relates to the substances in Schedules IV and V the enrolled bill says "unknowingly") or intentionally possess a controlled dangerous *533 substance classified in the respective schedules unless such substance was obtained directly or pursuant to a valid prescription.

Subsection B of each section provides the penalty for the proscribed acts listed in the two paragraphs of each subsection A (for brevity, distribution of a controlled dangerous substance and distribution of a counterfeit controlled dangerous substance). Subsection C of each section makes unlawful, and provides the penalty for, possession of the substance(s) classified in the respective schedules. (Possession of marijuana is given treatment separate from the other sixteen non-narcotic Schedule I substances and appears at R.S. 40:966, subd. D.)

In 1973, the Legislature enacted Act 207 amending and reenacting (in 12 sections) various provisions of Part X of Chapter 4 of Title 40. By its title and sub-title it purports to amend and reenact among other sections Subsection B (and C) of Section 966.

As initially enacted by the Legislature, the distribution of marijuana and the other sixteen non-narcotic Schedule I substances (these were all classified as hallucinogens under Schedule I C) was prohibited by Subsection A of Section 966 and the penalty was provided by Subsection B(2) of Section 966 (the pertinent penalty here is not more than 10 years at hard labor and a fine of not more than $15,000.00).

The 1973 amending statute, at Section 3, provides as follows:

Section 3. Subsection B and C of Section 966 of Title 40 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes are amended and reenacted to read as follows:
§ 966. Prohibited acts—Schedule I; penalties

* * * * * *

B. Penalties for violation of Subsection A. Any person who violates Subsection A with respect to:
(1) A substance classified in Schedule I which is a narcotic drug (all substances in Schedule I preceded by an asterisk "*"), upon conviction shall be sentenced to life imprisonment at hard labor and, in addition, may be required to pay a fine of not more than Fifteen Thousand Dollars.
C. Possession. It is unlawful for any person knowingly or intentionally to possess a controlled dangerous substance classified in Schedule I unless such substance was obtained directly, or pursuant to a valid prescription or order from a practitioner or as provided in R.S. 40:978, while acting in the course of his professional practice, or except as otherwise authorized by this part. Any person who violates this subsection with respect to:
(1) A substance classified in Schedule I which is a narcotic drug (all substances in Schedule I preceded by an asterisk "*"), shall be imprisoned at hard labor for not less than four years nor more than ten years without benefit of probation or suspension of sentence and may, in addition, be required to pay a fine of not more than Five Thousand Dollars.

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State v. St. Romain, 292 So. 2d 531 (La. 1974).

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