Court Opinion

ID: 9943485
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2024-02-23 17:06:11.776387+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:47:09.790666
License: Public Domain

STATE OF LOUISIANA

                               COURT OF APPEAL

                                FIRST CIRCUIT

                                  2023 KA 0755

                           STATE OF LOUISIANA

I                                   VERSUS
 6

                          CHAD MICHAEL BORNE

                                                     Judgment Rendered:   FEB 232024

                                Appealed from the
                          17th Judicial District Court
                       In and for the Parish of Lafourche
                                State of Louisiana
                                 Case No. 614437

     The Honorable Judge John E. LeBlanc, Pro Tempore, Judge Presiding

Kristine Russell                            Counsel for Appellee
District Attorney                           State of Louisiana
Joseph S. Soignet
Jason Chatagnier
Assistant District Attorneys
Thibodaux, Louisiana

Bertha M. Hillman                           Counsel for Defendant/Appellant
Covington, Louisiana                        Chad Michael Borne

           BEFORE: GUIDRY, C.J., CHUTZ, AND LANIER, JJ.
LANIER, J.

         The defendant, Chad Michael Borne,             was charged by amended bill of

information with one count of battery of a police officer, a violation of La. R.S.

14: 34. 2( A) & ( 13)( 2).   He entered a plea of not guilty and, following a trial by jury,

was found guilty of the offense charged. The trial court sentenced the defendant to

five years at hard labor, without the benefit of probation, parole, or suspension of

sentence, to be served consecutively to any other sentences.           The defendant now

appeals, assigning error to the trial court's denial of his challenge for cause of a

prospective juror.       For the following reasons, we affirm the defendant' s conviction

and sentence.

                                              FACTS

         On August 19, 2022, the defendant was an inmate at the Lafourche Parish

Jail and housed in the medical clinic. That afternoon, Deputy Dean Bascle went to

the clinic to collect lunch trays, at which point the defendant took an additional

lunch tray from the cart and refused to return it, despite Deputy Bascle's numerous

instructions to do so.            The defendant's behavior became more erratic and after

Deputy Bascle radioed for backup, the defendant began punching Deputy Bascle

repeatedly in the head before putting Deputy Bascle in a chokehold. A backup

officer then arrived and was able to pull the defendant off of Deputy Bascle and

place him in handcuffs.           Deputy Bascle suffered bruising on both sides of his face

and strangulation marks on his neck.

                             DENIAL OF CAUSE CHALLENGE

         In his sole assignment of error, the defendant contends that the trial court

erred in denying his challenge for cause of potential juror Beth Hebert.

         An accused in a criminal case is constitutionally entitled to a full and

complete voir dire examination and to the exercise of peremptory challenges.            La.

Const.    art.   I, §   17( A).    The purpose of voir dire examination is to determine

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prospective jurors' qualifications by testing their competency and impartiality and

discovering bases for the intelligent exercise of cause and peremptory challenges.

State v. Mills, 2013- 0573 ( La. App. 1 Cir. 8/ 27/ 14),     153 So. 3d 481, 486,    writ

denied, 2014- 2027 ( La. 5/ 22/ 15), 170 So. 3d 982 and writ denied, 2014- 2269 ( La.

9/ 18/ 15), 178 So. 3d 139.

       A challenge for cause should be granted, even when a prospective juror

declares his ability to remain impartial, if the juror's responses as a whole reveal

facts from which bias, prejudice, or inability to render judgment according to law

may be reasonably implied. However, a trial court' s ruling on a motion to strike

jurors for cause is afforded broad discretion due to the trial court's ability to

observe prospective jurors during voir dire.       State v. Halford, 2020- 0585 ( La.

App. 1 Cir. 6/ 4/ 21), 327 So. 3d 1004, 1012, writ denied, 2021- 00866 ( La. 11 / 3/ 21),

326 So. 3d 884, cert. denied, 2021- 7263, --- U.S. ---,   142 S. Ct. 2658, 212 L.Ed.2d

612 ( 2022).   Moreover, a prospective juror's seemingly prejudicial response is not

grounds for an automatic challenge for cause, and a trial judge's refusal to excuse

him on the grounds of impartiality is not an abuse of discretion, if after further

questioning the potential juror demonstrates a willingness and ability to decide the

case impartially according to the law and evidence. Id. at 1013.

       We presume prejudice when the trial court erroneously denies a challenge

for cause and the defendant has exhausted his peremptory challenges because an

erroneous ruling depriving an accused of a peremptory challenge violates his

substantial rights and constitutes reversible error.   State v. Kang, 2002- 2812 ( La.

10/ 21/ 03), 859 So. 2d 649, 651- 652.

       Herein, the trial court asked the prospective jurors, including Beth Hebert,

about any relationships they might have with the lawyers trying the case.

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Explaining the type of relationship to which it was referring, the trial                court

explained:

               Everybody knows somebody. Lafourche Parish is a fairly
       close- knit community but it's not about just that fact of knowing
       someone. It's how you know them, is it a close personal relationship,

       is it a business relationship, and will it affect your ability to serve? So
       those are my questions. Do any of you have any type of relationship
       either business, personal, social, family, or otherwise with the District
       Attorney Kristine Russell or Mr. Chatagnier and Ms. Bridgewater ....
       Raise your hand if so. Okay. None. Fine.

       However, during the State's questioning of the panel, Mr. Chatagnier, the

Assistant District Attorney, indicated that he and Ms. Hebert were acquaintances

and had occasionally crossed paths.          Ms.   Hebert confirmed that approximately

twenty years prior, she dated Mr. Chatagnier' s close friend. She further confirmed

that she and Mr. Chatagnier had not socialized since then and that this would have

no impact on her ability to be fair and impartial.         The defendant then moved to

challenge Ms. Hebert for cause, arguing that she was a friend of Mr. Chatagnier

and that her failure to disclose the relationship when asked by the trial court called

into question her credibility.    The trial court denied the cause challenge, and the

defendant used a peremptory challenge to strike Ms. Hebert.'                On appeal, the

defendant contends that because Ms. Hebert was not candid with the court, she was

not qualified to serve as a juror and the trial court erred in denying his challenge

for cause.

       A juror may be challenged for cause on the ground that the juror lacks a

qualification required by law or is not impartial,               whatever the cause of his

partiality.   See La. Code Crim. P. art. 797( 1) & (       2).    Further, a defendant may

challenge a juror for cause on the grounds that the relationship between the juror

and the district attorney is such that it is reasonable to conclude that it would

  In trials of offenses other than those punishable by death or necessarily by imprisonment at
hard labor, each defendant shall have six peremptory challenges. La. Code Crim. P. art. 799.
Herein, the defendant used all six of his peremptory challenges.

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influence the juror in arriving at a verdict. La. Code Crim. P. art. 797( 3). Finally,

a juror may be challenged for cause if the juror will not accept the law as given to

him by the court.      La. Code Crim. P. art. 797( 4).     However, the law does not

require that a jury be composed of individuals who are totally unacquainted with

the defendant, the prosecuting attorney, and the witnesses who may testify at trial.

Rather, the law requires that jurors be fair and unbiased.       Halford, 327 So. 3d at

1012.

        The appellant argues that it was Ms. Hebert's lack of candor to the court,

rather than her relationship with the Mr. Chatagnier, that disqualified her to serve

as a juror.    We disagree.    The record herein indicates that when the trial court

inquired into any relationships between parties and potential jurors, the trial court

explained it was interested in close personal or business relationships that might

affect the juror's ability to serve.       Given those qualifications,     it is entirely

reasonable    that   Ms.   Hebert believed that her former relationship with Mr.

Chatagnier's friend did not rise to the level articulated by the trial court.

        When asked directly about her relationship with Mr. Chatagnier, Ms. Hebert

confirmed that she had previously dated his friend. Ms. Hebert further confirmed

that although she and Mr. Chatagnier might say hello if they saw each other, they

did not socialize and had not in twenty years. Moreover, Ms. Hebert reiterated her

ability to be fair and impartial and to render a decision based only on the evidence

presented.
              In denying the defendant' s cause challenge, the trial court noted that the

two individuals knew each other twenty years prior and did not socialize or interact

other than to say hello. The trial court further found that a cause challenge was not

warranted based on Ms. Hebert's credibility or alleged lack of candor to the court.

        We find no reason to disturb the trial court's ruling on appeal.    Ms. Hebert's

responses, as a whole, fail to reveal facts from which bias, prejudice, or inability to

render judgment according to law may be reasonably inferred.               See State v.

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Brown, 2018- 01999 ( La. 9/ 30/ 21), 330 So. 3d 199, 267- 270, cert denied, --- U. S. --

  142 S. Ct. 1702, 212 L.Ed. 2d 596 ( 2022).      Furthermore, we agree with the trial

court that Ms.     Hebert's failure to initially disclose her relationship with Mr.

Chatagnier did not constitute a lack of candor to the court.    There is nothing in the

record to support the defendant's contention that Ms. Hebert was being dishonest or

purposefully     withholding   information   by   not   immediately    volunteering   her

relationship with Mr. Chatagnier. Rather, it appears that Ms. Hebert simply did not

think that her relationship with Mr. Chatagnier's friend two decades prior fell into

the category of "close personal relationship" described by the trial court.

      The reviewing court should accord great deference to the trial court's

determination, as the trial court was in the best position to assess Ms. Hebert' s

credibility and candor.    Additionally, the voir dire as a whole supports the trial

court's finding that Ms. Hebert       could be fair and impartial.        See State v.

Chappelle, 2020- 0062 ( La.     App. 1   Cir. 11/ 9/ 20), 2020 WL 6557932, * 5,       writ

denied, 2020- 01358 ( La. 1/ 26/ 21), 309 So. 3d 346 ( unpublished).    Upon reviewing

the record in its entirety, we cannot say that the trial court abused its discretion in

denying the defendant' s cause challenge of Ms. Hebert. This assignment of error is

without merit.

CONVICTION AND SENTENCE AFFIRMED.

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