State v. Plater

• Decision Date: 17 May 2017
• Docket Number: No. 51,338–KA,51,338–KA
• Citation: 222 So.3d 897
• Parties: STATE of Louisiana, Appellee v. Willie C. PLATER, Appellant
• Court: Court of Appeal of Louisiana — District of US

222 So.3d 897

STATE of Louisiana, Appellee

v.Willie C. PLATER, Appellant

No. 51,338–KA

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Second Circuit.

May 17, 2017

LOUISIANA APPELLATE PROJECT, By: Peggy J. Sullivan, Counsel for Appellant

WILLIE C. PLATER, Pro Se

JEFFREY M. LANDRY, Attorney General, COLIN CLARK, Deputy Solicitor General, JAMES E. STEWART, SR., District Attorney, TOMMY J. JOHNSON, LAURA O. FULCO, Assistant District Attorneys, Counsel for Appellee

Before BROWN, DREW, and MOORE, JJ.

BROWN, C.J.

On September 20, 1992, Steven Potter sustained a fatal gunshot wound

to the back of his head as he unloaded trash from his vehicle parked near a dumpster. Potter's vehicle was stolen. Willie Plater, along with two other individuals, was arrested. Although Plater was indicted on a charge of first degree murder, a unanimous jury ultimately convicted him of second degree murder. Plater, who was 17 years old when the crime was committed, received the mandatory sentence of life imprisonment at hard labor to be served without the benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. Plater appealed. This Court affirmed Plater's conviction and sentence. State v. Plater , 26,252 (La.App. 2 Cir. 09/21/94), 643 So.2d 313, writ denied , 94-2608 (La. 02/03/95), 649 So.2d 402.

In Miller v. Alabama , 567 U.S. 460, 132 S.Ct. 2455, 183 L.Ed.2d 407 (2012), the United States Supreme Court held that the Eighth Amendment forbids a sentencing scheme that mandates life in prison without the possibility of parole for juvenile homicide offenders. The Miller court did not establish a categorical prohibition against life without parole for juvenile homicide offenders; instead, the case required the sentencing court to consider certain factors, including the offender's youth, before deciding whether to impose life with or without parole.

In 2016, the United States Supreme Court, in Montgomery v. Louisiana , 577 U.S. ––––, 136 S.Ct. 718, 193 L.Ed.2d 599 (2016), held that Miller applied retroactively. On April 29, 2016, Plater filed a motion and memorandum in support of his resentencing pursuant to La. C. Cr. P. art. 882.

The resentencing hearing was held on June 20, 2016. The state waived its right to present evidence that Plater is irreparably corrupt, and defense counsel did not present any evidence. The trial court vacated Plater's original sentence and resentenced him to life imprisonment with the benefit of parole eligibility under La. R.S. 15:574.4(E).

Defense counsel filed a motion to reconsider sentence, arguing that if Plater would have had the opportunity to present evidence at the hearing, he would have been resentenced to manslaughter. Plater also filed a pro se motion to reconsider sentence.¹ The trial court denied both motions. This appeal followed.

DISCUSSION

The defense argues that because the mandatory sentence of life imprisonment without the benefit of parole for second degree murder is unconstitutional, Plater should have been resentenced to the next lesser included offense of manslaughter in effect at the time of the commission of the offense, citing State v. Craig , 340 So.2d 191 (La. 1976). The maximum sentence for a manslaughter conviction in 1992 was 21 years. In the alternative, the defense contends that the trial court should have reviewed Plater's record and used its authority to deviate downward from the mandatory minimum sentence to impose a sentence that was not constitutionally excessive.

In response to Miller , the Louisiana legislature enacted La. C. Cr. P. art. 878.1 and La. R.S. 15:574.4(E), which became effective on August 1, 2013.

La. C. Cr. P. art. 878.1 requires a trial court to conduct a hearing prior to imposing a life without parole sentence on a juvenile murder defendant:

A. In any case where an offender is to be sentenced to life imprisonment for a conviction of first degree murder ( R.S. 14:30 ) or second degree murder ( R.S. 14:30.1 ) where the offender was under the age of eighteen years at the time of the commission of the offense, a hearing shall be conducted prior to sentencing to determine whether the sentence shall be imposed with or without parole eligibility pursuant to the provisions of R.S. 15:574.4(E).

B. At the hearing, the prosecution and defense shall be allowed to introduce any aggravating and mitigating evidence that is relevant to the charged offense or the character of the offender, including but not limited to the facts and circumstances of the crime, the criminal history of the offender, the offender's level of family support, social history, and such other factors as the court may deem relevant. Sentences imposed without parole eligibility should normally be reserved for the worst offenders and the worst cases.

In the event that the trial court imposes a life sentence with parole eligibility, La. R.S. 15:574.4(E) provides the conditions, which include serving 35 years of the sentence imposed, before the defendant can apply to the parole board for parole consideration.

In Montgomery v. Louisiana , 577 at U.S. ––––, 136 S.Ct. at 736, the United States Supreme Court, in addressing concerns that the retroactive application of Miller would place an undue hardship on states, stated the following:

Giving Miller retroactive effect, moreover, does not require States to relitigate sentences, let alone convictions, in every case where a juvenile offender received mandatory life without parole. A State may remedy a Miller violation by permitting juvenile homicide offenders to be considered for parole, rather than by resentencing them. See, e.g., Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 6–10–301(c) (2013) (juvenile homicide offenders eligible for parole after 25 years). Allowing those offenders to be considered for parole ensures that juveniles whose crimes reflected only transient immaturity—and who have since matured—will not be forced to serve a disproportionate sentence in violation of the Eighth Amendment. (Emphasis added.)

On remand, the Louisiana Supreme Court in State v. Montgomery held that absent new legislation to the contrary, courts should utilize La. C. Cr. P. art. 878.1 and La. R.S. 15:574.4(E) when conducting resentencing hearings for juvenile homicide defendants sentenced prior to Miller . State v. Montgomery , 13-1163 (La. 06/28/16), 194 So.3d 606.

In State v. Fletcher , 49,303 (La.App. 2 Cir. 10/01/14), 149 So.3d 934, 942, writ denied , 14-2205 (La. 06/05/15), 171 So.3d 945, cert. denied , ––– U.S. ––––, 136 S.Ct. 254, 193 L.Ed.2d 189 (2015), this Court rejected claims that La. C. Cr. P. art. 878.1 and La. R.S. 15:574.4(E) are unconstitutional. In discussing the effects of Miller , we explained the following:

We find no error in the trial court's denial of the defense motion to declare the statutes unconstitutional. Like the trial court, we observe that the Miller court was presented with an opportunity to categorically declare that no juvenile murderer shall be imprisoned without benefit of parole, but it specifically refused to do so. The Supreme Court plainly recognized that the circumstances of some murders and the characters of some juvenile killers would warrant the imposition of the "harshest possible penalty," and it gave the sentencer latitude to respond appropriately to those situations.

See also State v. Doise , 15-713 (La.App. 3 Cir. 02/24/16), 185 So.3d 335, writ denied , 16-0546 (La. 03/13/17), 216 So. 3d 808, 2017 WL 1075529.

In State v. Craig , 340 So.2d 191, 193–94 (La. 1976), the Louisiana Supreme Court held that the mandatory death sentence for aggravated rape was unconstitutional and that the appropriate remedy to correct an illegal sentence was to remand the case for resentencing of the defendant to the most serious penalty for the next lesser included offense.

However, in State v. Shaffer , 11-1756 (La. 11/23/11), 77 So.3d 939,² the Louisiana Supreme Court took a different approach. There, in consolidated writ applications, three defendants sought relief from their life sentences following their convictions for aggravated rape committed while juveniles after the United States Supreme Court held that the Eighth Amendment precludes sentencing a juvenile to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for a non-homicide offense in Graham v. Florida , 560 U.S. 48, 130 S.Ct. 2011, 176 L.Ed.2d 825 (2010). The Louisiana Supreme Court rejected the defendants' argument that they should be sentenced under the lesser included offense of attempted aggravated rape as was done in State v. Craig , supra . Instead of remanding the cases for resentencing, the supreme court amended the defendants' life sentences to delete the restriction on parole eligibility. See also State v. Leason, 11-1757 (La. 11/23/11), 77 So.3d 933.

Further, this Court, along with several other circuits, has rejected the claim that juvenile homicide defendants should be sentenced under the manslaughter statute. See State v. Williams , 50,060 (La.App. 2 Cir. 09/30/15), 178 So.3d 1069, writ denied , 15-2048 (La. 11/15/16), 209 So.3d 790 ; State v. Williams , 15-0866 (La.App. 4 Cir. 01/20/16), 186 So.3d 242, writ denied , 16-0332 (La. 03/31/17), 217 So. 3d 358, 2017 WL 1315822 ; State v. Jones , 15-157 (La.App. 5 Cir. 09/23/15), 176 So.3d 713 ; State v. Graham , 14-1769 (La.App. 1 Cir. 04/24/15), 171 So.3d 272, writ denied , 15-1028 (La. 04/08/16), 191 So.3d 583.

The holding of Miller was that sentencing schemes which require mandatory life without parole sentences for juvenile homicide defendants violate the Eight Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. The Supreme Court expressly refused to invalidate sentencing schemes which allowed for a life without parole sentence for juvenile homicide defendants, recognizing that some juvenile homicide defendants, namely, those whose crime demonstrates "irreparable corruption," may well deserve a life without parole sentence. However, the Supreme Court made clear that before imposing such a sentence, a sentencer is "require[d] ... to take into account how children are ...