State v. Arena
| Decision Date | 09 June 1969 |
| Docket Number | No. 49550,49550 |
| Citation | 223 So.2d 832,254 La. 358 |
| Parties | STATE of Louisiana v. Theda ARENA. |
| Court | Louisiana Supreme Court |
Milton P. Masinter, New Orleans, for defendant-appellant.
Jack P. F. Gremillion, Atty. Gen., William P. Schuler, Asst. Atty. Gen., Jim Garrison, Dist. Atty., Louise Korns, Asst. Dist. Atty., for appellee.
Appellant was charged, tried and convicted on a bill of information containing four counts for issuing worthless checks in violation of R.S. 14:71. As each worthless check was for an amount less than $100 but for more than $20, the judge imposed sentences of two years imprisonment at hard labor on each count (the maximum jail sentence), ordering the sentences on the first three counts to run consecutively and the sentence on the fourth count to run concurrently with the other sentences.
During the proceedings below, appellant reserved two bills of exceptions on which she relies for a reversal of her convictions.
The first bill was reserved prior to the selection of the jury when an oral motion to recuse the judge was overruled.
Apart from the fact that the motion is procedurally defective in that Article 674 C.Cr.P., requires such a pleading to be in writing, the motion, which was based on the ground that the judge had a prior occasion represented appellant in a criminal case, is without substance.
It is stated in the judge's per curiam that counsel did not specify in the oral pleading when, or in what case, appellant had been represented by the judge, and that he has no recollection of ever representing or even meeting her. No proof whatever has been submitted to contradict this statement.
Bill No. 2 was taken to the judge's denial of a defense motion for a mistrial based on the ground that the posecution elicited evidence pertaining to appellant's previous criminal record.
While Detective Latterade of the New Orleans Police Department was testifying concerning his investigation of the complaint against appellant, he declared that he called at appellant's home for the purpose of notifying her that the checks she he given had been dishonered by the bank and to afford her the opportunity to make the checks good before the ten-day period expired. 1 The witness stated that when he arrived at the residence he interviewed a lady (whom he did not recognize at that time) about the N.S.F. checks. However, he testified that, after leaving the house, he examined his briefcase and found data showing that he...
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State v. Dotson
...provide a ground for reversal. State v. Sinclair, 258 La. 84, 254 So.2d 365; State v. Callihan, 257 La. 298, 242 So.2d 521; State v. Arena, 254 La. 358, 223 So.2d 832; State v. Simpson, 216 La. 212, 43 So.2d 585, cert. denied 339 U.S. 929, 70 S.Ct. 625, 94 L.Ed. This rule has greater force ......
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State v. Graves
... ... Arena, 254 La. 358, 223 So.2d 832; State v. Donaldson, 238 La. 265, 115 So.2d 345. Moreover, the trial judge admonished the jury to disregard the unresponsive remark. See LSA-C.Cr.P. Art. 771 ... The bill is without merit ... [259 La. 539] BILL OF EXCEPTIONS NO. 16 ... ...
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State v. Smith
...comment by the officer, not responsive to the question. Under the circumstances, no prejudicial error was sustained. State v. Arena, 254 La. 358, 223 So.2d 832 (1969). Furthermore, immediately after this testimony, Officer, Varnado was called to the stand and testified, without objection, t......
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State v. Gordy
...to appoint counsel for the defendant, is not evidence of the substantial bias or prejudice required for recusation. In State v. Arena, 254 La. 358, 223 So.2d 832 (1969), we rejected the contention that the mere fact that the trial judge had previously been employed by the defendant was grou......