State of Louisiana Versus Kendell Ellis, 276 So.3d 633

On Oct. 23, 2014, Anderson Massey was shot and killed on DiMarco Street in Marrero; an eight‑year‑old bystander was also shot but survived. Surveillance and GPS tracked vehicles leaving the scene. Cartridge casings and a projectile were recovered.
Detectives recovered the victim’s cleaned/ransacked car, collected DNA from the steering wheel, and later recovered a matching firearm in a 2016 traffic stop.
Jonathan Emilien, incarcerated with defendant Ellis, testified that Ellis confessed to planning a robbery of the victim, calling the victim minutes before the shooting, shooting the victim when he resisted, and fleeing in the victim’s car. Emilien received a plea deal on unrelated charges.
Co‑defendant Jarred Simmons gave prior statements implicating Ellis but recanted at trial; surveillance, phone records, and license‑plate data linked Ellis’s girlfriend’s car and phone calls to the scene and times Emilien described. DNA analysis produced a probabilistic match of Ellis to the steering wheel.
Ellis was convicted of second‑degree murder, attempted second‑degree murder, and conspiracy to commit armed robbery; he appealed, arguing insufficient evidence (identity) and moved for a new trial. The Fifth Circuit affirmed and remanded for correction of clerical sentencing entries.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Sufficiency of evidence/Identity	State: combined testimonial, surveillance, phone records, DNA, and recovered weapon sufficiently identify Ellis	Ellis: only jailhouse informant implicated him; co‑defendant recanted; several details uncorroborated	Affirmed — viewed in light most favorable to State, evidence sufficient to negate reasonable misidentification
Credibility of jailhouse informant (Emilien)	State: Emilien’s statements were corroborated in key respects; jury may credit him despite plea deal	Ellis: Emilien had incentives and some statements were inaccurate; jury should reject him	Affirmed — credibility for jury; corroboration supported verdict
Weight of recanted co‑defendant statements (Simmons)	State: prior statements and other evidence corroborate prosecution theory despite recantation	Ellis: Simmons recanted at trial and wrote letters recanting prior statements; verdict unreliable	Affirmed — jurors resolved conflicts; recantation did not render evidence insufficient
Sentencing clerical errors (minute entry/UCO)	State: transcript controls; clerical entries must be corrected	Ellis: minute entry and UCO inconsistent with oral sentence	Remanded — correct minute entry and UCO to conform to transcript; convictions and sentences otherwise affirmed

Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (standard for sufficiency of the evidence)
State v. Neal, 796 So.2d 649 (La. 2001) (reviewing sufficiency under Jackson)
State v. Bazley, 60 So.3d 7 (La. App. 5 Cir. 2011) (new‑trial denial and appellate review of sufficiency claims)
State v. Raymo, 419 So.2d 858 (La. 1982) (sufficiency review standards)
State v. Mitchell, 772 So.2d 78 (La. 2000) (circumstantial‑evidence instruction/reasonable hypotheses)
State v. Rowan, 694 So.2d 1052 (La. App. 5 Cir. 1997) (credibility determinations lie with the factfinder)
State v. Lynch, 441 So.2d 732 (La. 1983) (transcript controls over clerical sentencing entries)
State v. Garcie, 242 So.3d 1279 (La. App. 5 Cir. 2018) (procedure for correcting UCO/minute entry)