State v. Wilson

68 So. 3d 1031, 2009 La.App. 4 Cir. 304, 2010 La. App. LEXIS 235, 2010 WL 572519
Louisiana Court of Appeal·Decided February 17, 2010·No. No. 2009-KA-0304·Published·Cited by 8 cases

Opinion

EDWIN A. LOMBARD, Judge.

| ,011 appeal the defendant, Tyrone A. Wilson, challenges the sufficiency of the evidence supporting his conviction for armed robbery in violation of La. Rev.Stat. 14:641 and aggravated rape in violation of La. Rev.Stat. 14:422. After review of the record in light of the applicable law and arguments of the party, we affirm the defendant’s convictions and sentence.

Relevant Facts and Procedural History

On August 11, 2005, the defendant and his co-defendant, Hampton Franklin,3 were indicted for armed robbery (count one) and aggravated rape (count two). The defendant pleaded not guilty to both charges but, on December 7, 2007, following a five day trial, the defendant was found guilty as charged on both counts. His motions for a new trial and post-verdict judgment of acquittal were |2denied and on November 3, 2008, he was sentenced on count one (armed robbery) to serve twenty-five years at hard labor with credit for time served and on count two (aggravated rape) to serve life imprisonment at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation or suspen[1033] sion of sentence, and concurrent with his sentence in count one and with any other sentence.

Discussion

The defendant’s sole assignment of error, in briefs filed pro se and by counsel, is that the evidence is insufficient to support his conviction for armed robbery and aggravated rape. Accordingly, under Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979) and La.Code Crim. Proc. art., we “must determine that the evidence, viewed in the light most favorable to the prosecution, was sufficient to convince a rational trier of fact that all of the elements of the crime had been proved beyond a reasonable doubt.” State v. Neal, 00-0674, (La.6/29/01) 796 So.2d 649, 657 (citing State v. Captville, 448 So.2d 676, 678 (La.1984)). When circumstantial evidence is used to prove the commission of the offense, La. Rev.Stat. 15:438 requires that “assuming every fact to be proved that the evidence tends to prove, in order to convict, it must exclude every reasonable hypothesis of innocence.” Neal, 796 So.2d at 657. Ultimately, all evidence, both direct and circumstantial must be sufficient under Jackson to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt to a rational jury. Id. (citing State v. Rosiere, 488 So.2d 965, 968 (La.1986)). When a key issue at trial is whether the defendant was the perpetrator of the crime, the State is required to negate any reasonable probability of misidentification in order to carry its burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt. State v. Bright, 1998-0398 (La.4/11/00), 776 So.2d 1134, 1147. The fact-finder weighs the respective credibilities of the witnesses, and a reviewing court will generally not second-guess those | ¡jdeterminations. State ex rel. Graffagnino v. King, 436 So.2d 559 (La.1983). However, the touchstone of Jackson v. Virginia is rationality and that “irrational decisions to convict will be overturned, rational decisions to convict will be upheld, and the actual fact finder’s discretion will be impinged upon only to the extent necessary to guarantee the fundamental protection of due process of law.” State v. Mussall, 523 So.2d 1305, 1310 (La.1988). The trier of fact makes credibility determinations, and may, within the bounds of rationality, accept or reject the testimony of any witnesses, State v. Hampton, 98-0331 (La.4/23/99), 750 So.2d 867, 880, and we have repeatedly held that a factfinder’s credibility decision should not be disturbed unless it is clearly contrary to the evidence. State v. Huckabay, 2000-1082 (La. App. 4 Cir. 2/6/02), 809 So.2d 1093; State v. Harris, 99-3147 (La.App. 4 Cir. 5/31/00), 765 So.2d 432. The testimony of the victim alone is sufficient to establish the elements of the offense of aggravated rape, even where the state does not introduce medical, scientific, or physical evidence to prove the commission of the offense by the defendant. State v. Lewis, 97-2854 (La. App. 4 Cir. 5/19/99), 736 So.2d 1004, 1023; State v. Carter, 97-1096 (La.App. 4 Cir. 5/20/98), 713 So.2d 796.

The following facts were adduced at trial.

Detective Michael McCleary of the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) Sex Crime Unit testified that on June 19, 2005, he was notified that a sexual assault had occurred on the Newcomb College Campus of Tulane University. Upon arriving at the university he was informed that there were two crime scenes. The primary crime scene where the assault occurred was an office inside the Woldenberg Art Center. The secondary crime scene was the corner of LBroadway and Plum Streets where the suspects, who were chased off the campus, dropped a bag of items.

Detective McCleary observed that the office was in disarray. The desk telephone [1034] was smudged with bloody fingerprints and had been ripped from the wall. A trash can was searched for condoms; none was found. A jacket was lying on the floor, and a bicycle was leaning against the wall. On a shelf were several liquor bottles. Blood was observed on the floor. Detective McCleary secured the scene with crime tape and notified the crime lab. The crime lab processed the area for blood, semen, fingerprints and other body fluids. Blood and body fluid samples were taken. Several blood smudged fingerprints were lifted from the inside office doors and the desk telephone. In the hallway, Detective McCleary observed a green cloth bag and a plastic toy gun which was retrieved from the corner of Broadway and Plum Streets by Steven Durow, who chased the two suspects from the Woldenberg Center. Durow turned the toy gun over to the Tulane police, who placed it and the bag inside the hallway for processing.

The corner of Broadway and Plum Streets was also secured with crime tape. At the scene a paper bag was observed containing a broken bottle of Courvoisier Liquor and some loose change. The scene was processed by the crime lab.

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State v. Wilson, 68 So. 3d 1031, 2009 La.App. 4 Cir. 304, 2010 La. App. LEXIS 235, 2010 WL 572519 (La. Ct. App. 2010).

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