Court Opinion

ID: 9895276
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-11-06 17:06:50.168727+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:12:00.402425
License: Public Domain

STATE OF LOUISIANA
                        COURT OF APPEAL
                          FIRST CIRCUIT

                        DOCKET NUMBER
                          2023 KA 0431

                       STATE OF LOUISIANA

                               VERSUS

                FREDERICK CURTIS MANGRUM

                                3udgment Rendered:   NOV 0 3 2023

                        ON APPEAL FROM THE
          TWENTY- SECOND JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT
                WASHINGTON PARISH, LOUISIANA
                DOCKET NUMBER 16- CR10- 133283

      HONORABLE WILLIAM H. BURRIS, JUDGE PRESIDING

Warren LeDoux Montgomery            Attorneys for State of Louisiana
District Attorney
Matthew Caplan
J. Bryant Clark, Jr.
Assistant District Attorneys
Covington, Louisiana

Katherine M. Franks                Attorney for Defendant -Appellant
Louisiana Appellate Project        Frederick C. Mangrum
Madisonville, Louisiana

     BEFORE:      THERIOT, PENZATO, AND GREENE, 33.
GREENE, I

       The State charged the defendant, Frederick Curtis Mangrum, by amended bill of

information, with sexual battery on a victim under the age of thirteen years, a violation

of La. R. S. 14: 43, 1( C)( 2).   The defendant pled not guilty. After a trial, the jury found

him guilty as charged by unanimous verdict. The trial court sentenced the defendant to

forty years imprisonment at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension

of sentence.     The defendant filed a motion for reconsideration of sentence, which the

trial court denied. On appeal, this Court affirmed the defendant's conviction, vacated the

sentence, and remanded for resentencing. State v. Mangrum, 20- 0243 ( La. App. 1 Cir.

2/ 22/ 21), 321 So. 3d 986, 1003, writ denied, 21- 00401 ( La. 10/ 1/ 21), 324 So. 3d 1050

 Mangrum I).
           1 On remand, the trial court resentenced the defendant to forty years

imprisonment at hard labor, specifying that twenty eve of those years be without benefit

of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. The defendant now appeals, challenging

his sentence as excessive.        For the following reasons, we affirm the sentence.

                                                FACTS

     We adopt pertinent facts from this Court's prior opinion in Mangrum P

        B.J., who was eight years old at the time the defendant's trial began on July
        8, 2019, testified that her father, the defendant, " digged my private part."
        The victim identified " tuiee" as her front private part, and again, in regard to
        that part of her body, stated, " He digged it." When asked what the defendant
        used to dig in her private part, she stated, " His hand, I think." The victim
        testified that she lived with her mother, but that the incident occurred during
        an overnight stay at a family member's home, and that her mother was not
        present when the incident occurred. The victim testified that the next day,
        when she returned home, she told her mother what happened, but that her
        mother did nothing in response. The victim also told her grandmother. The
        victim did not know how many times the abuse occurred, though she believed
        it only happened once....

        The victim' s grandmother, A.3., testified that she learned of the incident when
        the victim came to stay with her in the summer of 2016. A. J. testified that
        the victim objected when she tried to clean the victim' s private area while
        giving her a bath, noting the victim stated, " I want to do it myself." A.J.
        initially believed that the victim just wanted to be an independent " big girl."
        However, after the victim left for a couple of days with her mother and then
        returned, she exhibited the same reluctance to allow her grandmother to
        clean her private area during baths.... [ A.].] ultimately asked the victim, " Has
        anybody ever, you know, touched you there?" The victim did not initially reply
        and only looked at A.J., so she added, " Don' t, just tell me the truth ... I ain' t

1 In Mangrum I, 321 So. 3d at 1003, we noted patent error in the trial court's failure to wait twenty four
hours before imposing sentence after denying the defendant's motion for new trial.

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       going to get mad."     The victim then replied, " Yes, ma' am."      When A.J. asked
      who, the victim replied, " My daddy" and began to cry.

       A.J. testified that the victim told her that she was watching television before
      the incident occurred.     As A.J. further testified, the victim told her that the
      defendant took her into a room, pulled down her lower clothing, laid her back,
       and " had his fingers down there." ...      A.J. called the Office of Child Protective
       Services (" OCS") in Bogalusa and reported B. J.' s disclosure.         On August 1,
       2016, A.J. brought the victim with her as she moved to Texas.

       In August 2016, Captain David Miller of the Bogalusa Police Department
       received a referral for this case from the OCS in Bogalusa....    After learning
       that the victim's grandmother had also reported the victim' s disclosure to child
       protective services in Texas, Captain Miller went outside of his jurisdiction to
       contact Lori Hix, a special investigator of the Department of Family and
       Protective Services (" DFPS`J in Texas.

      The victim participated in two recorded interviews in Texas, one on August 5,
       2016, by Investigator Hix at the home of one of the victim' s relatives, and one
       on August 11, 2015, by Susan Knobloch at the Children' s Advocacy Center
         CAC' s in Belton, Texas. On August 18, 2016, Gessica Finley, a pediatric
       forensic nurse coordinator at the McLane Children' s Hospital in Temple, Texas,
       conducted a medical evaluation and an unrecorded interview of the victim.
       During the three interviews, the victim identified her father, the defendant, as
        Bullet." The victim did not disclose any abuse or inappropriate behavior

       during the interview with Investigator Hix.               However,   during the CAC
       interview, the victim described an incident in which her father digitally
       penetrated her " tuiee" and her " butt." As indicated in Nurse Finley's notes,
       the victim made a similar claim during the interview at the McLane Children' s
       Hospital.

       The defendant testified at trial and confirmed that in 2014 ( while he and the
       victim' s mother, D.J., were still together) there was a time period during which
       he and the victim spent one or two nights at the home of C. M., the victim' s
       adult sister. However, the defendant repeatedly denied ever sexually abusing
       or touching the victim inappropriately. ( Footnotes omitted.)

                                    EXCESSIVE SENTENCE

       In   his    sole   assignment   of error,       the   defendant   contends   his   sentence   is

unconstitutionally excessive, because he was sixty four years old when resentenced, and

the sentence therefore constitutes a " death penalty" as it exceeds his life expectancy. The

State argues the defendant cannot challenge his sentence as excessive on appeal, because

he failed to move for reconsideration of sentence after resentencing.          We disagree.

      Louisiana Code Criminal Procedure Article 881. 1 pertinently provides:

       A.( 1)   In felony cases, within thirty days following the imposition of sentence
       or within such longer period as the trial court may set at sentence, ... the
       defendant may make or file a motion to reconsider sentence.

       B.   The motion shall be oral at the time of sentence or shall be in writing
       thereafter and shall set forth the specific grounds on which the motion is
       based.

                                                   3
       E.   Failure to make or file a motion to reconsider sentence or to include a
       specific ground upon which a motion to reconsider sentence may be based,
       including a claim of excessiveness, shall preclude ... the defendant from
       raising an objection to the sentence or from urging any ground not raised in
       the motion on appeal[.]

       At resentencing, the trial court acknowledged defense counsel' s argument that a

forty -year sentence for a sixty -four-year-old defendant was a " life sentence" that would

result in him dying in prison. The trial court noted that it continued to believe that a forty -

year sentence at hard labor was appropriate, but " given [ the defendant's] age," it would

deviate from that sentence by allowing the defendant to be parole eligible after serving

twenty five years of the sentence. Defense counsel then noted his objection to the sentence

as a whole and informed the court that defendant would challenge the excessiveness of the

sentence by appeal.

       Defense counsel' s remarks constituted an oral motion to reconsider sentence made

at the time of sentencing, alerting the trial court of specific problems with the sentence, i.e.,

defense counsel felt it was excessive. Moreover, defense counsel objected at a time when

the trial court could take corrective action, thus, obviating the need for the defendant to file

a written motion to reconsider sentence after sentencing.         See La. C. Cr. P. art. 881. 1( 6);

State v. Caldwell, 620 So. 2d 859 ( La. 1993);       State v. Sanchez, 18- 0099 ( La. App. 1 Cir.

10/ 18/ 18), 2018 WL 5077788, * 1, n. 1 ( unpublished).      Additionally, because the trial court

specifically considered the claim that the sentence was excessive due to the defendant's

age, defense counsel was not required to allege any more specific ground than that the

sentence was excessive to preserve the instant claim for review. See State v. Mims, 619

So. 2d 1059, 1059- 60 ( La. 1993) ( per curiam).

       Louisiana Code of Criminal Procedure article 894. 1 sets forth criteria the trial court

must consider before imposing a sentence.            The trial court need not recite the entire

checklist of La. C.Cr. P art. 894. 1, but the record must reflect that it adequately considered

the criteria.   State v. Moore, 12- 0876 ( La.   App. 1 Cir. 2/ 15/ 13), 2013 WL 595670, * 2

 unpublished),   writdenied, 13- 0600 ( La. 10/ 11/ 13), 123 So. 3d 1216. In light of the criteria,

a review for individual excessiveness should consider the circumstances of the crime and

the trial court's stated reasons and factual basis for its sentencing decision.       Id   Remand

                                                 4
for full compliance with La. C. Cr. P. art. 894. 1 is unnecessary when a sufficient factual basis

for the sentence is shown. Id.

         The Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Louisiana Constitution

Article I, § 20 prohibit the imposition of excessive punishment. Although a sentence is within

statutory limits, it may violate a defendant's constitutional right against excessive

punishment and is subject to appellate review.              State v. Alexander, 21- 1346 ( La. App. 1 Cir.

7/ 13/ 22), 344 So.3d 705, 725.        Generally, a sentence is considered excessive if it is grossly

disproportionate to the severity of the crime or is nothing more than the needless imposition

of pain and suffering.       Id. A sentence is considered grossly disproportionate if, when the

crime and punishment are considered in light of the harm to society, it is so disproportionate

as to shock one's sense of justice. Id. A trial court is given wide discretion in the imposition

of sentences within statutory limits, and an appellate court should not set aside the sentence

in the absence of an abuse of that discretion.                State v. Allen, 05- 1622 ( La.       App. 1 Cir.

3/ 29/ 06), 934 So. 2d 146, 156.

         Whoever commits the crime of sexual battery on a victim under the age of thirteen

years when the offender is seventeen years of age or older shall be punished by

imprisonment at hard labor for not less than twenty five years nor more than ninety nine

years.    At least twenty five years of the sentence imposed shall be served without benefit

of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence.                La. R.S. 14: 43. 1( C)( 2).    The trial court

resentenced the defendant to forty years imprisonment at hard labor with twenty five

years to be served without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. The

trial court cited the facts of the case and what it had heard at triaL2 The court found any

lesser sentence would deprecate the seriousness of the crime, and the defendant needed

correctional treatment. See La. C. Cr. P. art. 894. 1( A)( 2) and ( A)( 3). In response to defense

counsel' s argument at the resentencing hearing, the trial court considered the defendant's

age as a mitigating factor and reduced the parole restriction of the original sentence

imposed.     However, the trial court apparently felt the aggravating factors prevented the

reduction of the number of years of incarceration imposed.

2 At the original sentencing hearing, the trial court indicated it had ordered a presentence investigation ( PSI).
The PSI indicated the defendant had been convicted of possession of cocaine on three separate occasions.

                                                        5
        The defendant references three cases, wherein lesser sentences were imposed for

allegedly similar conduct, to support his assertion that his sentence is excessive. In State

v. Bridgewater, 22- 517 ( La.      App. 5 Cir. 4/ 26/ 23), 362 So. 3d 998, the defendant was

sentenced to thirty years imprisonment at hard labor without the benefit of parole,

probation, or suspension of sentence for sexual battery of his daughter on multiple occasions

over a period of about five years, beginning when she was five or six years old. In State v.

Evans, 48, 471 ( La. App. 2 Cir. 12/ 18/ 13), 130 So. 3d 965, the defendant was sentenced to

fifty years imprisonment at hard labor, with twenty five years of the sentence to be served

without the benefit of parole for sexual battery of his six-year-old daughter; the offense was

the defendant's third conviction for deviant, sexual behavior with very young girls. And, in

State v. Johnson, 11- 1213 ( La. App. 4 Cir. 2/ 7/ 13), 109 So. 3d 994, writ denied, 2013- 0554

 La.   11/ 1/ 13),   124 So. 3d   1106,   the defendant was sentenced to twenty five years

imprisonment at hard labor without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence

for sexual battery of a six-year-old child; the defendant was seventy one years old at the

time of trial. The defendant's reliance on Bridgewater, Evans, and Johnson is misplaced. It

is well settled that sentences must be individualized to the particular offender and the

offense committed.       State v. McAlister, 95- 1683 ( La. App. 1 Or 9/ 27/ 96), 681 So. 2d 1280,

1282.

         We also reject the defendant's argument that the trial court imposed the sentence

without consideration of the defendant's obligations to register as a sex offender and be

electronically monitored.     The trial court is presumed to know the law, and there is nothing

in the record to indicate that the trial court failed to consider any and all consequences to

the defendant resulting from his conviction. See State v. St. Cyre, 19- 0034 ( La. App. 1 Cir.

12/ 19/ 19), 292 So. 3d 88, 110, writ denied, 20- 00142 ( La. 5/ 26/ 20), 296 So. 3d 1063.

        The defendant had a minimum sentencing exposure of twenty five years at hard labor

without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence and a maximum sentencing

exposure of ninety- nine years at hard labor, with twenty five years of the sentence without

benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. La. R. S. 14: 43. 1( C)( 2). A thorough

review of the record reveals the trial court adequately considered the criteria of La. C. Cr. P.

art. 894. 1 and did not manifestly abuse its discretion in imposing the sentence herein. The

                                                  G
trial court specifically referenced La. C. Cr.P. art. 894. 1( A)( 2.) and ( A)( 3) and generally

referenced the trial record.        The record establishes the defendant knew or should have

known that B.J. was particularly vulnerable or incapable of resistance due to her extreme

youth.     The defendant used his status as her father to facilitate the commission of the

offense.    See La. C. Cr.P. art. 894. 1 ( 13)( 2) and ( 13)( 4).   Further, the sentence imposed was

not grossly disproportionate to the severity of the offense,                    and   thus,   was   not

unconstitutionally excessive. The assignment of error is meritless.

      SENTENCE AFFIRMED.