State Of Washington v. Lerone Major, Jr.
49075-7
Wash. Ct. App.Dec 5, 2017Background
- Lerone Major Jr. and Jazmine Graves (married) had a domestic violence no-contact order in effect as of May 11. On August 1 Graves returned to the marital residence to retrieve belongings; an altercation followed.
- Graves reported being punched, slapped, choked, and having her phone taken and thrown; she made recorded 911 and police statements that were played to the jury. At trial she provided a less consistent account and admitted some mutual physicality.
- Police photographed Graves’s injuries; Officer Bartz testified and twice referred to Graves as "victim Jazmine" despite a pretrial in limine order barring that term.
- Major was convicted of: assault in violation of a no-contact order (felony), violation of a post-conviction no-contact order, two counts of fourth-degree assault, and interfering with reporting domestic violence (gross misdemeanors). Not guilty on burglary and second-degree assault.
- Sentencing: 19 months on the felony; 364 days on each gross misdemeanor, with the misdemeanor jail terms suspended for two years and 12 months of community custody imposed on each misdemeanor. The judgment form and record were unclear whether misdemeanor time was concurrent with the felony, creating uncertainty whether any misdemeanor time was actually suspended.
- Major appealed asserting ineffective assistance for counsel’s failure to object to the "victim" references and argued sentencing errors (including that probation/community-custody conditions tied to suspended misdemeanor time were unauthorized per State v. Gailus).
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether counsel was ineffective for not objecting when a witness called the complainant "victim" contrary to the in limine order | State: court need not reverse absent egregious error; counsel acted reasonably overall | Major: counsel deficient for failing to object to three uses of "victim," no strategic reason given | Counsel was not ineffective; failure to object had plausible strategic bases and did not meet the egregiousness threshold |
| Whether Bartz’s reference as "victim" constituted impermissible opinion evidence | State: no claim developed; issue not argued with authority | Major: witness’s label was opinion evidence implying defendant’s guilt | Court declined to consider because Major provided no legal authority or developed argument under RAP 10.3(a)(6) |
| Whether the sentencing court improperly conditioned suspended misdemeanor time on community custody/probation when no time was actually suspended (Gailus issue) | Major: If misdemeanors run concurrent with full felony term, no jail time was suspended and conditioning probation/community custody on it is unauthorized | State: ambiguity in judgment; likely court intended misdemeanors concurrent with each other but not with felony | Sentence ambiguous; remanded for resentencing to clarify whether misdemeanor time runs concurrent with felony; Gailus implications require clarification |
| Whether community custody was authorized on misdemeanor counts | Major: sentencing error to impose community custody on misdemeanors | State: did not raise but record permits review | Court noted community custody applies only to felonies (error), and remanded for resentencing without resolving all suspension issues |
Key Cases Cited
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (establishes ineffective-assistance standard)
- State v. Grier, 171 Wn.2d 17 (applies Strickland in Washington and frames deficient-performance and prejudice analysis)
- State v. Kolesnik, 146 Wn. App. 790 (failure to object is usually trial tactic; ineffective-assistance requires egregious circumstances)
- State v. Gailus, 136 Wn. App. 191 (holding that if maximum jail is imposed so no time is suspended, the court cannot condition probation on suspended time)
- State v. Sutherby, 165 Wn.2d 870 (addresses sentencing authority and related principles)