State v. Strange

940 So. 2d 819, 2006 WL 2774338
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedSeptember 27, 2006
Docket06-497
StatusPublished

This text of 940 So. 2d 819 (State v. Strange) 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. Strange, 940 So. 2d 819, 2006 WL 2774338 (La. Ct. App. 2006).

Opinion

940 So.2d 819 (2006)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Sean A. STRANGE.

No. 06-497.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

September 27, 2006.

*820 Hon. J. Phillip Haney, District Attorney, New Iberia, LA, Jeffrey J. Trosclair, Assistant DA, Franklin, for State/Appellee, State of Louisiana.

G. Paul Marx, Attorney at Law, Lafayette, LA, for Defendant/Appellant, Sean A. Strange.

Court composed of JOHN D. SAUNDERS, ELIZABETH A. PICKETT, and JAMES T. GENOVESE, Judges.

PICKETT, Judge.

STATEMENT OF FACTS

On the morning of November 19, 2002, the defendant, Sean Strange, and his cousin, Talbert Porter, were traveling east on Interstate 10 in St. Martin Parish in the defendant's Ford Thunderbird. Louisiana State Trooper Troy Dupuis pulled the vehicle over because he noticed it displayed two license plates-one regular or "hard" license plate located in the customary position near the rear bumper of the car, and also a temporary paper tag displayed in the vehicle's back window. Mr. Porter, who had been driving, could not produce his driver's license, and Trooper Dupuis' check determined that it had been suspended.

As Trooper Dupuis questioned the men about their destination and the general plans for their trip, they both told him that they were traveling from Dallas, Texas to Florida to stay with an aunt. The men did not know, however, the directions to the aunt's home and could not tell him how long they would be staying in Florida. Trooper Dupuis, suspicious that the men might be involved in illegal narcotics activity, obtained the defendant's oral and written consent to search the vehicle. In the course of his search, Trooper Dupuis discovered approximately sixty pounds of marijuana concealed in a false compartment behind the car's rear bumper. The defendant and Mr. Porter were arrested and a search of the vehicle incident to the arrests revealed small amounts of cocaine and methamphetamine in Mr. Porter's wallet, which had been concealed behind the vehicle's glove compartment.

ASSIGNMENTS OF ERROR

The defendant, Sean Strange, was charged by bill of information on January 3, 2002, with one count of possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute in violation of La.R.S. 40:966(A)(1) and one count of possession of cocaine in violation of La.R.S. 40:967(C).

On May 8, 2003, the trial court granted the defendant's Motion to Suppress, finding that the officer who stopped the defendant's vehicle did not have grounds for reasonable suspicion for the stop. On December 30, 2003, this court denied the State's supervisory writ application and upheld the defendant's Motion to Suppress. However, the Louisiana Supreme Court granted the State's writ application and subsequently reversed the trial court's ruling on the Motion to Suppress. See State v. Strange, 04-273 (La.5/14/04); 876 So.2d 39.

The matter was remanded and continued to a two-day jury trial, which began on March 1, 2005. The jury found the defendant guilty of attempted possession of marijuana with intent to distribute. On August 12, 2005, the trial court imposed a sentence of five years at hard labor, with all but eighteen months suspended, and supervised probation for three years following his custodial release. The defendant subsequently filed a Motion to Reconsider, which was denied on October 21, 2005.

The defendant now appeals his conviction, arguing that the evidence presented *821 by the state was insufficient to support the verdict, and that the search of his vehicle was illegal because he was detained for "an unreasonable time after the end of the traffic stop investigation."

ERRORS PATENT

In accordance with La.Code Crim.P. art. 920, all appeals are reviewed by this court for errors patent on the face of the record. After reviewing the record, we find one error patent.

The trial court erred when it ordered the defendant to pay a probation supervision fee of "not less than $50.00" per month. When probation is ordered, a probation supervision fee must be imposed as a condition of probation. La.Code Crim.P. art. 895 and State v. Bey, 03-277 (La.App. 3 Cir. 10/15/03), 857 So.2d 1268. By failing to impose a definite supervision fee, the trial court gave the probation office discretion to establish a greater amount. In State v. Patterson, 628 So.2d 107 (La.App. 5 Cir.1993), the fifth circuit stated that any conditions of probation not imposed by the trial court are illegal and should not be used for revocation. This matter is remanded and the trial court is instructed to impose a definite probation supervision fee as mandated by La.Code Crim.P. arts. 895 and 895.1.

Further, we find that the minutes of sentencing are in need of correction. According to the minutes of sentencing, the trial court ordered the defendant to pay a fine of $2,500.00 plus court costs. The minutes also indicate that the trial court ordered the defendant to pay $20.00 for clerk's costs. The transcript of sentencing, however, does not indicate that the trial court imposed either of the above costs. According to the transcript, the trial court imposed $250.00 for the cost of prosecution and $250.00 for the cost of investigation, both of which are listed in the minutes of sentencing. No other costs of court are specified in the transcript. The minutes of sentencing should reflect the sentence set forth in the sentencing transcript. Thus, on remand, the minutes of sentencing must be corrected to accurately reflect the sentence set forth in the sentencing transcript.

ASSIGNMENT OF ERROR NUMBER ONE

For his first assignment of error, the defendant asserts that the State failed to "establish knowing possession of marijuana where the defendant purchased a car and drove through Louisiana and only an expert state trooper could have discovered a hidden compartment in the car." In support of his argument, the defendant argues that he did not know that the drugs were concealed in the vehicle, and that they were either already in the car when he purchased it four days earlier, or put there after the purchase by someone else without his knowledge.

In State v. Touchet, 04-1027, pp. 1-2 (La.App. 3 Cir. 3/9/05), 897 So.2d 900, 902, this court stated:

With regard to sufficiency of the evidence, this court set forth as follows in State v. Lambert, 97-64, pp. 4-5 (La.App. 3 Cir. 9/30/98), 720 So.2d 724, 726-27:
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. 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); *822 State v. Moody, 393 So.2d 1212 (La.1981). It is the role of the fact finder to weigh the respective credibility of the witness. Therefore, the appellate court should not second-guess the credibility determination of the trier of fact beyond the sufficiency evaluations under the Jackson standard of review. See King, 436 So.2d 559, citing State v. Richardson, 425 So.2d 1228 (La.1983).
In order for the State to obtain a conviction, it must prove the elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.

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

Related

State of Louisiana v. Todd Vincent Edwards
Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2010

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
940 So. 2d 819, 2006 WL 2774338, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-strange-lactapp-2006.