State Of Louisiana v. Kevin Gaines

Supreme Court of Louisiana
November 16, 2022
Chief Deputy Clerk of Court
For the Court
The Supreme Court of the State of Louisiana
STATE OF LOUISIANA
VS.
KEVIN GAINES
No. 2022-K-00993
_ _
_ _ _ _
IN
RE: State of Louisiana - Applicant Plaintiff; Applying For Writ Of Certiorari,
Parish of Caddo, 1st Judicial District Court Number(s) 340106, Court of Appeal,
Second Circuit, Number(s) 54,383-KA;
_ _ _ _ _ _
November 16, 2022
Writ application granted. See per curiam.
JTG
JLW
JDH
SJC
WJC
JBM
PDG
11/16/2022 "See News Release 050 for any Concurrences and/or Dissents."

S
UPREME COURT OF LOUISIANA
No
. 22-K-0993
S
TATE OF LOUISIANA
v.
K
EVIN GAINES
O
N SUPERVISORY WRITS TO THE FIRST
JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, PARISH OF CADDO
PE
R CURIAM:
G
ranted. The court of appeal erred in finding as errors patent that
defendant’s sentences of 50 years imprisonment at hard labor on counts one and
two for molestation of a juvenile under the age of 13, La.R.S. 14:81.2, were illegal.
The 50 -year sentences are within the range authorized by the amended and
renumbered penalty provision for those crimes during the times the State alleged
and proved that defendant committed them. Therefore, we reverse the court of
appeal’s ruling, which vacated the sentences for counts one and two and remanded
for resentencing. Because the trial court has already resentenced defendant in
accordance with the court of appeal’s erroneous instructions, we also vacate those
sentences. We reinstate the sentences originally imposed by the trial court. We
remand to the court of appeal for further consideration of defendant’s assignment
of error, which the court of appeal partially pretermitted in its ruling.
11/16/22