State v. Doyle

• Decision Date: 22 December 2021
• Docket Number: 21-KA-257
• Citation: 335 So.3d 393
• Parties: STATE of Louisiana v. Isaiah DOYLE
• Court: Court of Appeal of Louisiana — District of US

335 So.3d 393

STATE of Louisiana

v.Isaiah DOYLE

NO. 21-KA-257

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Fifth Circuit.

December 22, 2021

COUNSEL FOR PLAINTIFF/APPELLEE, STATE OF LOUISIANA, Honorable Paul D. Connick, Jr., Metairie, Thomas J. Butler, Darren A. Allemand, Jacqueline F. Maloney, Metairie, Vincent J. Paciera, Jr.

COUNSEL FOR DEFENDANT/APPELLANT, ISAIAH DOYLE, Richard J. Bourke, Christine M. Lehmann

Panel composed of Judges Jude G. Gravois, Marc E. Johnson, and John J. Molaison, Jr.

MOLAISON, J.

The defendant appeals his conviction for first degree murder. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.

PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On November 5, 2005, a grand jury in Jefferson Parish returned a true bill of indictment that charged the defendant, Isaiah Doyle, with one count of first degree murder, in violation of La. R.S. 14:30. On March 8, 2006, the defendant was found incompetent to stand trial and he was remanded to the Eastern Louisiana Mental Health System-Forensic Division on June 7, 2007. Co-defendant, Jose Rojas, filed motions to suppress confession, evidence, and identification in case number 05-5961, on May 4, 2007, that were later adopted by defendant. On March 19, 2008, following a hearing, the defendant was found competent to stand trial by the district court.

On June 5 and July 31, 2009, suppression hearings were held but left open. On August 24, 2009, a suppression hearing was held, after which the trial court denied defendant's motion to suppress statements. On December 14, 2009, the trial court granted the defendant's motion to represent himself and, on that same date, he withdrew a plea of not guilty and entered pleas of not guilty by reason of insanity. On December 17, 2009, the defendant was held in contempt of court and sentenced to six months in parish prison. Afterwards, on that same date, the trial court ordered the Louisiana Capital Conflict Panel to represent the defendant, and on January 13, 2010, the trial court ordered the Baton Rouge Capital Conflict Office to represent him as well.

On March 11, 2011, defense counsel filed a motion for psychiatric evaluation which asserted that, as the trial approached, the defendant's "mental condition is deteriorating to the point where he is not able to assist counsel." On March 14, 2011, while the defendant was represented by counsel, the district court commenced a competency hearing. At the conclusion of the hearing, the defendant was found competent to stand trial. Jury selection began on that same date. At an arraignment on March 19, 2011, the defendant pled not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity. On March 21, 2011, the defendant filed a Motion to Quash the Venire that was denied.

On March 21, 2011, the State made an oral motion in limine to preclude the defense from entering evidence of mental retardation during the guilt phase of trial, and the court granted the State's motion. The defendant subsequently filed a writ with this Court challenging that ruling. On March 22, 2011, this Court denied the writ in part and granted it in part. See, State v. Doyle , 11-K-306 (La. App. 5 Cir. 3/22/11) (unpublished writ disposition). The defendant then filed a writ with the Louisiana Supreme Court challenging this Court's ruling. On March 23, 2011, the Louisiana Supreme Court granted the writ and found that this Court erred by requiring the trial court to give the jury a limiting instruction that it was not to consider evidence of mental retardation, defect, and/or diminished capacity as having any bearing on the defendant's mental capacity at the time of the offense. See State v. Doyle , 11-597 (La. 3/23/11), 56 So.3d 948.

Trial commenced on March 21, 2011, and at the conclusion of trial on March 24, 2011, the defendant was found guilty as charged. The penalty phase of the trial commenced on March 25, 2011, and the jury returned a verdict of death by lethal injection. The defendant appeared for sentencing on July 25, 2011. At that time, defense counsel filed "Motion To Continue Sentencing and Omnibus Motion For New Trial, For Arrest Of Judgment, To Bar The Death Penalty And For Relief From Discrimination In Jury Selection." The trial court denied the motion to continue sentencing and continued the remaining two motions. On July 27, 2011, the trial court denied the defendant's motions for new trial, arrest of judgment, and to bar the death penalty before imposing the jury's unanimous death sentence. On August 29, 2011, the defendant filed a motion for reconsideration of sentence, which was denied by the trial court on November 2, 2011. A second motion for new trial was filed on March 28, 2012, and denied on May 1, 2013. The defendant's motion for appeal was granted on September 22, 2014.

On November 17, 2017, the Louisiana Supreme Court issued an order which stated that it had reviewed the trial court's determination on June 23, 2017, that the defendant was not competent to proceed on appeal. The supreme court concluded that this finding was supported by the record, and remanded the matter a second time for the trial court to determine whether the defendant was irrestorably incompetent. On March 22, 2019, in a sealed per curiam , the trial court did, in fact, determine that the defendant was irrestorably incompetent. The supreme court affirmed that finding on September 29, 2020, and remanded the case to the trial court to determine whether the defendant lacks the capacity to understand the death penalty in this case, such that he may not be executed and to determine whether resentencing was appropriate. On January 14, 2021, the district court determined that the defendant lacked the capacity to understand the death penalty such that he could not be executed and, on January 19, 2021, the defendant's death sentence was vacated and he was resentenced to life imprisonment without the benefit of parole, probation or suspension of sentence. An order of appeal to this Court was signed by the trial court on February 1, 2021, and the instant appeal followed.¹

FACTS

It was established at trial that on the morning of August 4, 2005, the victim, Ms. Hwa Lee, was found dead from multiple gunshot wounds on the floor of ACE Convenience Store ("ACE"),² where she worked as a cashier at her family's business on Barataria Blvd., which is on the Westbank of Jefferson Parish. Dr. Karen Ross, a forensic pathologist, testified that she conducted an autopsy on Ms. Lee on August 5, 2005. Dr. Ross documented four gunshot wounds: one in the head, two on the right side of the chest, and another on left side of the abdomen. Dr. Ross determined that the cause of Ms. Lee's death was multiple gunshot wounds and the manner of death was homicide.

Three witnesses at trial recounted events they personally observed on the morning of August 4, 2005. Robert Zang testified that he was doing construction work in the area and went into ACE at approximately 7:00 a.m. At that time, he got a cup of coffee and walked to the register. Behind the counter, he saw a body on the floor. James Rome testified that he was near ACE, sitting on a bench, at approximately 7:00 on the morning of August 4, 2005. He saw a grey Cadillac with a bright neon green "no insurance" sticker drive into the parking lot and stop. A man in the front passenger seat, wearing jeans and a hooded shirt, got out of the car and pulled the hood over his head before entering ACE. Mr. Rome did not see anyone give direction to the passenger from the Cadillac. Mr. Rome did not recall the race of the hooded man at the time of trial, but did recall that the man appeared to be "loaded" or wobbly on his feet. Mr. Rome saw the hooded man exit the store nervously, but did not see where the man went in because of traffic. Kyron Walker testified that on the morning of August 4, 2005, just before 7:00 a.m., he was driving northbound on Barataria Boulevard when he heard gunshots. He saw someone with a hood over his head run from ACE and get into a grey Cadillac that had a "no insurance" sticker on it. Mr. Walker later identified the car for police.

Captain Dennis Thornton testified that on August 4, 2005, he was a shift supervisor in the homicide division of the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office ("JPSO"). He was called to the scene at ACE and informed that there was a female victim who died after being shot in a robbery. Capt. Thornton then assigned Sergeant Donald Meunier as the case officer responsible for working with crime scene and criminal laboratory personnel to investigate the location of the murder/robbery.³ Capt. Thornton stated that he prepared a scene sketch and an evidence key, and later prepared a report. He recounted that there were many items of evidentiary interest at the ACE crime scene, including ballistic material such as shell casings, and shoe prints. He identified that the gun used in the murder, which produced a fired cartridge case and a projectile bullet found at the scene behind the store counter, was a Hi-Point semi-automatic 45 pistol. Capt. Thornton was present when the search warrant for the Cadillac was executed, during which time the gun at issue was located in the car. He noted that the gun's magazine still had live rounds in it.⁴

Sergeant Dax Russo testified that on August 4, 2005, he was a deputy working for JPSO and participated in an investigation of a first degree murder that took place at the ACE Convenience Store. As part of that investigation, Sgt. Russo downloaded video from the store's surveillance system which showed a suspect entering the store, firing a gun at the victim, and leaving.

JPSO Deputy Michael Burgess testified that he was on duty on August 4, 2005, when he responded to an all-points bulletin for an older model grey Cadillac with a "no insurance" sticker on it. He saw the Cadillac driving toward him and he made eye contact with the car's two occupants. When Deputy Burgess saw that the Cadillac had a "no insurance" sticker on the back of it, he made decision to activate his unit's lights and siren to pull...