State v. Staton

922 So. 2d 1216, 2006 WL 229920
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedFebruary 1, 2006
Docket2005-612
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 922 So. 2d 1216 (State v. Staton) 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. Staton, 922 So. 2d 1216, 2006 WL 229920 (La. Ct. App. 2006).

Opinion

922 So.2d 1216 (2006)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Stanford Dewayne STATON.

No. 2005-612.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

February 1, 2006.
Rehearing Denied March 22, 2006.

*1217 Don M. Burkett, District Attorney, Many, LA, for Appellee, State of Louisiana.

Michael W. Kelly, Lake Providence, LA, for Defendant/Appellant, Stanford Dewayne Staton.

Court composed of MARC T. AMY, MICHAEL G. SULLIVAN, and BILLY HOWARD EZELL, Judges.

AMY, Judge.

The defendant was charged with distribution of a controlled dangerous substance, Schedule II, in violation of La.R.S. 40:967. Following a jury trial, the defendant was found guilty and sentenced to twenty-five years at hard labor. The defendant appeals, arguing that the evidence did not support his conviction, the court erroneously permitted the State to respond to a discovery motion at trial, and his sentence was excessive. For the following reasons, we affirm.

Factual and Procedural Background

The record indicates that on June 24, 2003, the Tri-Parish Drug Task Force (hereinafter "Task Force") was stationed in Room 102 at the Siesta Motel in Many, Louisiana. The Task Force was investigating drug dealing in the area with the help of its informant, Michael "Mike" Marshall. Marshall was in Room 123 of the motel, where he called alleged drug dealers to purchase drugs. According to Lieutenant Patrick Cobbs of the Task Force, a device was placed on the telephone in Marshall's room to record telephone conversations. Lt. Cobbs testified that Marshall wore a body microphone to allow the Task Force to hear his side of the telephone conversations. The Task Force members also set up a video camera in their room to videotape cars as they entered the parking lot.

Marshall testified that he called the defendant, Stanford Staton, to set up a drug deal. According to the transcript of the conversation which is contained in the record, Marshall told the defendant that he had "fifty" in cash.[1] He informed the defendant that he was in Room 123 at the Siesta Motel. When Marshall asked how *1218 long it would take him to arrive, the defendant responded: "Not long."

Approximately ten to fifteen minutes later, the defendant arrived outside Room 123. Marshall opened the door and noticed that the defendant was still sitting in the front passenger's seat. When Marshall asked the defendant if he was coming in, the defendant made a gesture with his head indicating that the driver was. Marshall purchased the "fifty" from the driver and then, according to the transcript, asked him his name. The driver answered that his name was Marcello. The record indicates that the Task Force later retrieved the substance purchased. Testing revealed it to be crack cocaine.

The defendant was charged with conspiracy to distribute Schedule II controlled dangerous substance. The charge was later amended to distribution of a controlled dangerous substance, Schedule II, in violation of La.R.S. 40:967. The jury returned a guilty verdict, and the trial court sentenced the defendant to twenty-five years at hard labor. The defendant appeals, designating the following assignments as error:

1.) The jury wrongfully convicted Mr. Staton[.]
2.) The trial court committed error by failing to make the State comply with the discovery motion to obtain CI (Confidential Informant) Background[,] thereby violating Mr. Staton's constitutional rights.
3.) The court committed error by giving Mr. Staton an excessive sentence.
4.) Any error patent on its' [sic] face.

Discussion

Errors Patent

In accordance with La.Code Crim.P. art. 920, all appeals are reviewed by the court for errors patent on the face of the record. After reviewing the record, we find one error patent. The defendant was not advised of his right to remain silent or his right to have the State prove its case against him before he was adjudicated a habitual offender. In State v. Pitre, 04-1134, p. 4 (La.App. 3 Cir. 2/9/05), 893 So.2d 1009, 1012 (citations omitted), the court held that "the failure to so advise the Defendant is harmless because a hearing was held, at which the Defendant was adjudicated a third habitual offender. We further note that although the minutes indicate the Defendant testified, nothing in the minutes indicates the Defendant acknowledged his status as a habitual offender."

Here, a hearing was held in which the defendant was adjudicated a habitual offender. Further, the face of the record does not indicate that the defendant acknowledged his status as a habitual offender. Accordingly, we find that the trial court's failure to advise the defendant of his rights was harmless error under these circumstances.

Insufficient Evidence

The defendant argues that he was wrongfully convicted insofar as the law and evidence failed to meet the burden of proof necessary to prove the elements of the crime for which he was convicted.

In State v. Freeman, 01-997, pp. 2-3 (La.App. 3 Cir. 12/12/01), 801 So.2d 578, 580, this court set forth the standard for insufficiency claims:

When the issue of sufficiency of evidence is raised on appeal, the critical inquiry of the reviewing court is whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. *1219 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979); State ex rel. Graffagnino v. King, 436 So.2d 559 (La.1983); State v. Duncan, 420 So.2d 1105 (La.1982); State v. Moody, 393 So.2d 1212 (La. 1981). It is the role of the fact finder to weigh the respective credibilities of the witnesses, and therefore, the appellate court should not second guess the credibility determinations of the trier of fact beyond the sufficiency evaluations under the Jackson standard of review. See Graffagnino, 436 So.2d at 563, citing State v. Richardson, 425 So.2d 1228 (La.1983). To obtain a conviction, the elements of the crime must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

In the instant case, the State presented key evidence in the form of a tape recording of Marshall's telephone conversation with the defendant. The transcript of the conversation indicates that when the defendant came to the telephone, the conversation proceeded as follows:

STATON: Hello.
CRI [Marshall]: Hey, man.
STATON: Hey.
CRI: Hey, what's up? It's Mike.
STATON: Yeah.
CRI: Hey, you feel like coming to see me? I got fifty. It's in cash.
. . . .
CRI: Ok, I didn't think you could hear me. Hey, but, uh, I got a room, I'm not at my house.
STATON: You got a what?
CRI: I said I got a room. I'm not at my house. I had to get out of my house a little bit, my Mom was tripping. So, I come and got a room.
STATON: Oh, yeah?
CRI: Yeah. Can you do that, or what?
STATON: Well, s[____], yeah, yeah.
CRI: Ok, I'm at the Siesta.
STATON: Yeah.
CRI: Room 123. You know how it's shaped like an "L"?
. . . .
STATON: Yeah.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

State v. Hill
106 So. 3d 1209 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2012)
State v. Baylor
998 So. 2d 800 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2008)
State v. J.G.
939 So. 2d 655 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2006)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
922 So. 2d 1216, 2006 WL 229920, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-staton-lactapp-2006.