State v. WashingtonState v. Washington
Defendant, Jerry Washington, was indicted on February 21, 1974 by the Washington Parish Grand Jury for second degree murder in viоlation of
In 1973, the Legislature of this State, subsequent to this Court‘s decisions in Holmes and Flood, amended former
“Second degree murder is the killing of a human being:
(1) When the оffender has a specific intent to kill or to inflict great bodily harm; оr
(2) When the offender is engaged in the perpetration or attempted perpetration of aggravated arson, aggravаted burglary, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated escape, armed robbery, or simple robbery, even though he has no intent to kill.
Whoever commits the crime of second degree murder shall be imprisoned at
hard labor for life and shall not be eligible for parole, probation or suspension of sentence for a period of twenty years.”
Since the penalty for second degreе murder is life imprisonment, by present statutory definition, second degree murder is not a “capital offense“.
The issue to be decided is whether the system of “classification” of crimes as announced in Flood and Holmes still applies to render second degree murder non-bailable under C.Cr.P. Article 313.
In Holmes the majority held that even though the United States Supreme Court in its decision in Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238, 92 S.Ct. 2726, 33 L.Ed.2d 346 (1972) declared the death penalty unconstitutional as it was then imposed, this did not dеstroy the system of classification of crimes in Louisiana. In Holmes thе majority held murder should be classed as a capital offensе “at least until the legislative process has reorganized the criminal law and procedure in view of Furman.” Murder, prior to the 1973 amеndments, was still classified in the statute as a capital crime, although the penalty of death could not be enforced. Accоrdingly, in Flood, the majority held that those persons charged with “capital offenses” were not entitled to bail where the proof wаs evident or the presumption great.
The legislature has now aсted and reorganized the criminal law in defining murder. The capital offense of murder is now defined by
It is ordered that the defendant, Jerry Washington, be admitted to bail pending trial.
BARHAM, J., concurs with additional reasons.
BARHAM, Justice (concurring with additional reasons).
I still adhere to my views expressed in dissents in State v. Holmes, 263 La. 685, 269 So.2d 207 (1972); State v. Flood, 263 La. 700, 269 So.2d 212 (1972); State v. Rhymes, 284 So.2d 923 (La.1973), and in the writ denial in State v. Williams, 289 So.2d 158 (La.1974).
I respectfully concur.