194 So. 3d 679
La. Ct. App.2016Background
- On July 28, 2013, Derrick Bland shot James Stockton six times at a Baton Rouge apartment party; three shots struck while Stockton stood and three after he lay on the ground; Stockton died at the scene.
- Bland lived in the apartment, had been drinking heavily throughout the day, and turned himself in the next day after disposing of the gun.
- A jury convicted Bland of second-degree murder (specific intent to kill or inflict great bodily harm).
- Bland moved for a postverdict judgment of acquittal; the trial court granted the motion, reducing the conviction to negligent homicide based on its view that voluntary intoxication precluded specific intent.
- The State appealed the grant of postverdict judgment of acquittal; the appellate court reversed, reinstated the second-degree murder verdict, and remanded for sentencing.
Issues
| Issue | State's Argument | Bland's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the trial court erred in granting a postverdict judgment of acquittal (reducing conviction to negligent homicide) | State: Evidence, viewed in light most favorable to the State, sufficed to prove specific intent to kill beyond a reasonable doubt despite intoxication | Bland: Voluntary intoxication was so severe it precluded formation of specific intent to commit second-degree murder | Reversed: appellate court held the evidence (six accurate shots, three fired after victim fell, lack of provocation, flight/disposal of gun) permitted a rational juror to find specific intent; trial court improperly substituted its judgment for the jury's |
Key Cases Cited
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (U.S. 1979) (establishes standard for sufficiency review: whether any rational trier of fact could find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt)
- State v. Broaden, 780 So.2d 349 (La. 2001) (deliberate close-range shooting can support finding of specific intent to kill)
- State v. Captville, 448 So.2d 676 (La. 1984) (flight after offense raises inference of guilty mind)
- State v. Ordodi, 946 So.2d 654 (La. 2006) (appellate sufficiency review and deference to jury verdict)
- State v. Mussall, 523 So.2d 1305 (La. 1988) (Jackson standard and review of whole record for reasonable doubt)
- State v. Mitchell, 772 So.2d 78 (La. 2000) (trial court and appellate court must not act as a thirteenth juror)
- State v. Wright, 730 So.2d 485 (La. App. 1st Cir.) (when direct and circumstantial evidence conflict, view direct evidence in light most favorable to prosecution)
- State v. Cousan, 684 So.2d 382 (La. 1996) (specific intent can form in an instant)