28,403 La.App. 2 Cir. 8/21/96, State v. Wilson

• Decision Date: 21 August 1996
• Citation: 679 So.2d 963
• Parties: 28,403 La.App. 2 Cir
• Court: Court of Appeal of Louisiana — District of US

Page 963

679 So.2d 963

28,403 La.App. 2 Cir. 8/21/96

STATE of Louisiana, Appellee, v. James L. WILSON, Appellant.

No. 28403-KA.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Second Circuit.

Aug. 21, 1996.

J. Wilson Rambo, Monroe, for Appellant.

Richard Ieyoub, Attorney General, Jerry L. Jones, District Attorney, Stephen T. Sylvester, Assistant District Attorney, for Appellee.

Before NORRIS, HIGHTOWER and GASKINS, JJ.

NORRIS, Judge.

James L. Wilson was indicted on two counts of aggravated rape, La.R.S. 14:42, and one count of second degree kidnaping, La.R.S. 14:44.1. A 12-member jury unanimously found him guilty as charged on all counts. The district court imposed the mandatory life sentences at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation or suspension of sentence for each count of aggravated rape and directed these to be consecutive; and 20 years at hard labor for the second degree kidnaping, including two without benefit, and directed this to be concurrent with the other sentences. Wilson now appeals his convictions and sentences; we affirm.

Factual and procedural background

The victim, KRT, testified that in the early morning hours of August 21, 1992 she was asleep in her bed with two of her small children in their apartment on South Fourth Street in Monroe. Around 3:00 she was wakened by a man choking her. She kicked him away, but he pulled a knife and in the ensuing struggle she sustained a minor cut to her left hand. By threatening to kill her and the children, the assailant obtained her compliance. He ordered her to quiet the children, and then to get a blanket and pillow. At knife point he led her into the living room, ordered her to spread the blanket on the floor and to get undressed; he then pulled her night shirt over her head and raped her.

After this was done, he told her she was "going with" him and ordered her to put a blanket in a paper bag; still fearing for her life, she complied. Holding the knife in one hand and placing his other arm around her neck, the assailant led her out the door, stopping first at a nearby front porch to pick up a pair of shoes and a T-shirt, then taking her on an odyssey around South Monroe, eventually ending up at a vacant house on Mississippi Street. There he told her to lay the blanket on the floor and get undressed; he then raped her a second time. After this assault, the assailant fell asleep; KRT grabbed the knife, slipped away from him and ran outside.

Monroe Police Officer Michael Harp testified that he was patrolling down Mississippi Street around 6:30 or 6:45 that morning when a woman dressed in a night shirt and holding a knife flagged him down. She hysterically reported that she had been raped in the back room of the vacant house. Officer Harp, backed up by Officer Jordan, approached the rear of the house and found in the back yard a man trying to put on a pair of pants. When the officers called to him, he quickly pulled up the pants and darted south toward a nearby lumber mill. The officers gave chase on foot and radioed for additional backup. Officer Mercer drove to the mill entrance and saw the suspect run past his patrol car. He then gave chase and tackled the suspect from behind, under a moving conveyor belt.

After he was taken into custody, the suspect told officers that his name was "Teddy V. Kimble," but a medical ID card on his person revealed his name was James L. Wilson. Officer Mercer carried him back to the house on Mississippi Street where KRT positively identified him as the rapist and kidnapper. KRT was then taken to St. Francis Medical Center, where she was treated for the cut on her hand and given a rape test kit; it tested positive for seminal acid and seminal acid phosphate. Officers investigating KRT's apartment found that a window pane had been pried out of place in the kitchen; the pane and a knife were outside the window. Detectives concluded that Wilson had gained entry through this window.

The grand jury indicted Wilson on October 15, 1992. He initially pled not guilty but in April 1993 withdrew that plea and entered the dual plea of not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity. He moved to appoint a sanity commission; the District Court named Drs. Aris Cox and Gerald Robertson to serve. Arguing that he was mentally retarded, Wilson requested that the court appoint a specialist in mental retardation or developmental disability. The court therefore appointed Dr. Maurice Dayan, a licensed psychologist specializing in mental retardation. At the sanity commission hearing on February 16, 1995, Drs. Dayan and Robertson testified. The court found that Wilson was capable of assisting counsel by relating the details of the alleged offenses, providing a list of witnesses, and listening to witnesses who may testify against him. The court found that Wilson's retardation was not so great that he could not assist counsel. The court found capacity to proceed; trial was held in May 1995.

Discussion: Capacity to proceed

By his fourth assignment Wilson urges the District Court erred in finding capacity to proceed. Specifically, he contends the court imposed a greater burden of proof on the defendant than required by the facts and the jurisprudence. State v. Williams, 381 So.2d 439 (La.1980); State v. Bennett, 345 So.2d 1129 (La.1977).

Mental incapacity to proceed exists when, as a result of a mental disease or defect, a defendant presently lacks the capacity to understand the proceedings against him or to assist in his defense. La.C.Cr.P. art. 641. The two-fold test of capacity to stand trial under this article is whether the accused (1) understands the consequences of the proceedings, and (2) has the ability to assist in his defense by consultation with counsel. Drope v. Missouri, 420 U.S. 162, 95 S.Ct. 896, 43 L.Ed.2d 103 (1975); State v. Smith, 471 So.2d 954, 956 (La.App.2d Cir.1985). Mental retardation or sub-normal intelligence is not in itself proof of incapacity. State v. Lawrence, 368 So.2d 699 (La.1979); State v. Smith, supra. The decision as to a defendant's capacity to proceed should not turn solely on whether he suffers from mental disease or defect, but must be grounded in the nature of the charge, the complexity of the case and the seriousness of the decisions he faces. State v. Narcisse, 426 So.2d 118 (La.1983), cert. denied, 464 U.S. 865, 104 S.Ct. 202, 78 L.Ed.2d 176 (1983).

Because Louisiana law presumes a person sane and responsible for his actions the defendant bears the burden of proving he is incapable of standing trial because of mental disease or defect. State v. Bennett, supra. Article 648 A was amended in 1990 ¹ and provides in pertinent part:

The criminal prosecution shall be resumed unless the court determines by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant does not have the mental capacity to proceed. (emphasis added)

Prior to this amendment, the Code did not suggest a standard by which the defendant had to prove his incapacity; the jurisprudence required a clear preponderance. State v. Gwinn, 373 So.2d 1304 (La.1979); State v. Bennett, supra. Since the amendment, this and another appellate court have still referred to the preponderance standard. ² The United States Supreme Court has recently held that States may not require defendants to prove their capacity to proceed by any standard greater than a preponderance of evidence. Cooper v. Oklahoma, --- U.S. ----, 116 S.Ct. 1373, 134 L.Ed.2d 498 (1996). The transcript does not make it clear which standard the District Court relied upon in finding Wilson competent to proceed. R. pp. 324-326.

The potential error, even if present, does not warrant reversal as the record clearly shows that Wilson failed to prove incapacity to proceed by even the lesser standard of a preponderance. At the sanity hearing, the court heard testimony from Dr. Maurice Dayan, a psychologist who specializes in mental retardation. He examined Wilson for about two hours and performed a series of tests; he also reviewed Wilson's medical and school records and interviewed his mother. He found Wilson's I.Q. to be 69 (±5 points), which places him in the range of mild mental retardation; if the margin of error is added to this score, Wilson would not be considered mentally retarded by Louisiana's definition, and if the margin is subtracted, Wilson would still be only mildly mentally retarded. Dr. Dayan testified that Wilson scored poorly in cognitive thinking but could think and understand concrete concepts. He felt that Wilson would have difficulty understanding his basic legal rights and directions given by his attorney. He admitted, however, that Wilson could talk with his attorney and relate the events of the offense. Dr. Dayan also testified that Wilson has a history of "conduct disorder," or behavior not in agreement with the normal rules of society, and "oppositional defying," or not following directions.

Dr. Gerald Robertson, a psychiatrist, also examined Wilson; although he did not perform an I.Q. test, he estimated Wilson was functioning in the mildly retarded range. Dr. Robertson also examined hospital records from a closed head injury that Wilson sustained some seven weeks before the instant offenses. Dr. Robertson testified that such an injury could worsen a pre-existing condition such as mental retardation, but this additional impairment would last no more than six months; notably, he examined Wilson nearly 11 months after the injury. He felt that Wilson could identify his attorney and cooperate in his own defense. R.pp. 307, 317. He found that despite the head injury, Wilson could recall these offenses and relate a defense. Dr. Robertson concluded that Wilson understood the nature of the charges against him and their consequences, while conceding that Wilson may not fully grasp all aspects of the legal proceedings. R.p. 308.

Dr. Aris Cox did not testify at the hearing, but his report was admitted into evidence on stipulation that he was on probation with the medical...