State v. Preston, 178 So. 3d 207

Defendant Joshua Preston was indicted for second-degree murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and armed robbery; jury convicted on all counts and he received lengthy prison terms.
Surveillance video and a lay witness (Sherry Conant) linked a thin Black male in white/blue-striped shirt and blue hat to the July 16, 2011 homicide; Conant later identified Preston in a pre-indictment physical lineup.
Two weeks after the murder, police circulated a sketch and photos; anonymous tips and a Crimestoppers response led investigators to include Preston in a photo array; Conant initially could not ID photos.
Preston was later arrested for an unrelated February 1, 2012 armed robbery; officers found stolen property (victim’s purse, phone, ID, cards) in the home where Preston was found hiding; a silver revolver was recovered nearby.
A court-ordered physical lineup on February 15, 2012 (pre-indictment) resulted in Conant’s positive in-person ID; Preston objected to proceeding without appointed counsel after arrest.
On appeal Preston challenged (1) denial of motion to suppress the lineup ID (attorney absent), (2) trial court refusal to replace two allegedly sleeping jurors or grant mistrial, and (3) sufficiency of evidence for the armed robbery conviction; the appellate court affirmed.

Issue	State's Argument	Preston's Argument	Held
Admissibility of pre-indictment physical lineup ID (right to counsel)	Constitutional right to counsel had not attached pre-indictment; State acted in good faith and accommodated request for counsel; lineup procedures fair	Lineup occurred after arrest without appointed counsel present; written objection should have prevented proceeding	Denial of suppression affirmed: right to counsel not yet attached pre-indictment; no bad faith by State; lineup admissible
Substitution of allegedly sleeping jurors / mistrial	Trial judge monitored jurors, offered remedies, found no proof jurors were asleep for substantial time; denial within discretion	Two jurors were sleeping; counsel asked to replace them with alternates; mistrial required if jurors unable to perform	Denial of substitution and mistrial affirmed: record lacked evidence jurors were actually asleep or unable to perform; no abuse of discretion
Sufficiency of evidence for armed robbery conviction (identity)	Circumstantial and physical evidence (flight, hiding under bed, victim’s property found next to where defendant hid, recovered pistol nearby) sufficiently linked Preston to robbery	No eyewitness ID of Preston as robber; alternative suspect (unnamed "Joshua Jones") suggested	Affirmed: viewing evidence in light most favorable to prosecution, identity proved beyond reasonable doubt; alternative-suspect testimony uncorroborated

Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (establishes standard for sufficiency of the evidence review)
Davis v. United States, 512 U.S. 452 (right to counsel attaches at initiation of adversary proceedings)
McNeil v. Wisconsin, 501 U.S. 171 (functional test for attachment of Sixth Amendment right to counsel)
State v. Hearold, 603 So.2d 731 (La. 1992) (sequencing trial-error and sufficiency review)
State v. Draughn, 950 So.2d 583 (La. 2007) (State must negate reasonable probability of misidentification when identity is key issue)
State v. Thomas, 406 So.2d 1325 (La. 1981) (statutory right to counsel from moment of arrest; remedy requires bad-faith showing)
State v. Graffia, 951 So.2d 1186 (La. App. 5 Cir.) (upholding lineup where defendant allowed to select participants/position after indigent defender declined attendance)
State v. Cass, 356 So.2d 396 (La. 1978) (juror removal for sleeping requires proof juror unable to perform duties)