State v. Walker

432 So. 2d 1057
Louisiana Court of Appeal·Decided May 25, 1983·No. CR82-489·Published·Cited by 19 cases

Opinion

432 So.2d 1057 (1983)

STATE of Louisiana, Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
Charles WALKER, Defendant-Appellant.

No. CR82-489.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

May 25, 1983.

*1058 Robert Levy, Asst. Dist. Atty., Alexandria, for plaintiff-appellee.

Thomas M. Yeager and Chris J. Roy, Alexandria, for defendant-appellant.

Before GUIDRY, STOKER and LABORDE, JJ.

LABORDE, Judge.

Defendant, Charles "Sonny" Walker, Jr., was charged on January 15, 1982, with the second degree battery of Daisy Walker, a violation of LSA-R.S. 14:34.1. Trial was held before the Honorable Robert Jackson on May 17, 1982. On May 18, 1982, the jury returned a verdict of guilty as charged, and on June 21, 1982, defendant was sentenced to five years at hard labor. Defendant seeks review of his conviction and alleges six (6) assignments of error.

FACTS

On September 21, 1981, the defendant arrived at his former wife's trailer, located in Rapides Parish. He discovered his former wife, the victim, in the trailer with Mr. Jerry Winstead. Defendant forced Mr. Winstead out of the trailer at knife point, inflicting minor wounds. The defendant returned to the trailer where he proceeded to beat the victim with his fists until she fell to the floor, at which time he stomped on her abdomen causing her severe and serious bodily injury. The victim was hospitalized for approximately twenty-one (21) days after which time a lengthy period of recuperation was necessary.

ASSIGNMENT OF ERROR NO. 2[1]

In this assignment of error, the defendant alleges that the trial court erred in adjudging him to be a multiple offender *1059 under the provisions of LSA-R.S. 15:529.1(D).

This statute provides:

"D. If, at any time, either after conviction or sentence, it shall appear that a person convicted of a felony has previously been convicted of a felony under the laws of this state, or has been convicted under the laws of any other state or of the United States; or any foreign government or country of a crime, which, if committed in this state would be a felony, the district attorney of the parish in which subsequent conviction was had may file an information accusing the person of a previous conviction. Whereupon the court in which the subsequent conviction was had shall cause the person, whether confined in prison or otherwise, to be brought before it and shall inform him of the allegation contained in the information and of his right to be tried as to the truth thereof according to law and shall require the offender to say whether the allegations are true. If he denies the allegation of the information or refuses to answer or remains silent, his plea or the fact of his silence shall be entered on the record and the judge shall fix a day to inquire whether the offender has been convicted of a prior felony or felonies, as set forth in the information. If the judge finds that he has been convicted of a prior felony or felonies, or if he acknowledges or confesses in open court, after being duly cautioned as to his rights, that he has been so convicted, the court shall sentence him to the punishment prescribed in this Section, and shall vacate the previous sentence if already imposed, deducting from the new sentence the time actually served under the sentence so vacated." (Emphasis added.)

The defendant presents two arguments. Defendant contends that the automatic pardon of his first felony conviction under LSA-Const. Art. 4, § 5(E)(1) should pardon him for all purposes; and thus, this pardoned conviction should not be used as a predicate for the multiple offender bill. Defendant also claims that he was not duly cautioned as to his rights under the statute.

Initially, it must be noted that defendant raises these issues for the first time on appeal. However, the review of a case for an illegal sentence is considered a patent error and thus reviewable under LSA-C.Cr.P. art. 920(2). State v. Siegel, 354 So.2d 525 (La.1978); State v. Wendell Martin, infra.

Defendant's claim that it was error to use his pardoned felony conviction as the basis for the multiple offender bill is without merit. The Louisiana Supreme Court held in State v. Adams, 355 So.2d 917 (La. 1978), that Art. 4 § 5(E)(1) of the Louisiana Constitution does not restore the status of innocence to a convicted person. Therefore, the court concluded that the automatic pardon provision does not preclude consideration of a first felony conviction in adjudicating a person as a habitual offender.

Defendant's next contention is that the record does not affirmatively reflect that he was cautioned as to his rights under R.S. 15:529.1(D); and therefore, he was not validly adjudged to be a multiple offender. Under R.S. 15:529.1(D), the rights of which a defendant shall be cautioned are his rights to a formal hearing and his right to require the state to prove the issue of his identity as the same person who was previously convicted of the prior felony in the multiple offender bill. It is evident from the statute that these are the "rights" of which the defendant should be cautioned. State v. Wendell Martin, 427 So.2d 1182 (La.1983).

The record in this case does not reflect that the trial judge advised the defendant of these rights before the defendant admitted that he was the same person who was convicted of the charge of second degree battery. The following is the pertinent portion of the transcript from the multiple offender and sentencing hearing:

"BY THE COURT: Just a minute, Mr. Levy. Mr. Walker you have been accused by the State as a multiple offender, in that they accuse you of having been convicted of the felony that *1060 they just mentioned. And that you were later on convicted of another felony. Have you gone over this bill of information with your lawyer, Mr. Willson?
BY MR. WALKER: No, sir.
BY THE COURT: I think you better do so. Basically, the charge is that you were convicted of the offense on the 16th day of August, 1978, the offense of ... you were in court with your attorney Mr. Larry Feldman according to this accusation, and entered a plea of guilty to the charge of second degree battery. Now, the charge against you further is that you were convicted of the offense of second degree battery on May the 17th, 1982. Do you admit or deny that you are the same person who was convicted on the 16th day of August 1978 ... or, I'm sorry on April the 4th, 1979, of the offense of second degree battery upon Daisy Walker?
BY MR. WALKER: Yes, sir, I'm the same fellow, but I didn't do it this time.
BY THE COURT: Yes, sir. Well, do you admit or deny that you are the same Sonny Walker who was convicted of the offense of second degree battery on May the 17th ... on May the 18th, 1982?
BY MR. WALKER: I'm Sonny Walker, yes, sir.
BY THE COURT: You're the same fellow?
(no response recorded)"

Inasmuch as the record does not reflect that the trial court advised the defendant of his right to be tried as to the truth of the allegations contained in the multiple offender bill, defendant's sentence should be set aside and the matter remanded for rehearing with specific instruction to the trial court to comply with the provisions of R.S. 15:529.1(D). State v. Youchunas, 187 La. 281, 174 So. 356 (La.1937).

Additionally, defendant urges this Court to hold that the rights of a

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