State of Louisiana v. Garrett J. Ward

STATE OF LOUISIANA * NO. 2023-KA-0524

VERSUS * COURT OF APPEAL

GARRETT J. WARD * FOURTH CIRCUIT

* STATE OF LOUISIANA

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DLD DYSART J., DISSENTS WITH REASONS

I respectfully dissent from the majority’s opinion to affirm the sentence

imposed upon the defendant, Garrett Ward. The sentence that was imposed is

disproportionate and inordinate with the circumstances of the crime as well as

other sentencing factors. I believe the trial court abused its discretion in imposing

a 30 year sentence.

Excessive sentences are prohibited under the Eighth Amendment of the

United States Constitution and Louisiana Constitution Article I, § 20. A sentence

may be constitutionally excessive even if the sentence falls within the range

permitted by statute. See State v. Sepulvado, 367 So.2d 762, 769 (La. 1979). For a

sentence to be found excessive, it must be “so grossly disproportionate to the crime

committed, in light of the harm caused to society, as to shock our sense of justice.”

State v. Cann, 471 So.2d 701, 703 (La. 1985).

When reviewing a claim that a sentence is excessive, this Court must

determine whether the trial court adequately complied with the statutory guidelines

in La. C.Cr.P. art. 894.1 and whether the facts of the case warrant the sentence

imposed. State v. Rouser, 2014-0613, p. 18 (La. App. 4 Cir. 1/7/15), 158 So.3d

860, 872 (citations omitted). “If adequate compliance with La. C.Cr.P. art 894.1 is

found, the review court must determine whether the sentence imposed is too severe

in light of the particular defendant and the circumstances of this case….” Id.,

2014-0613, p. 18, 158 So.3d at 872-73.

On January 5, 2018, Mr. Ward attended a belated holiday dinner with his

girlfriend and her work colleagues. After a dinner which lasted four hours, the

party relocated to a bar on St. Charles Avenue. At approximately 1:00 a.m., Mr.

Ward argued with his girlfriend, left the bar, and passed out at the base of a tree.

He woke up to find the victim, Arnold Jackson, “going through [his] pockets” and

felt something sharp poke his hand. Mr. Ward responded by striking Mr. Jackson.

The investigating officer, Sgt. Williams testified he was assigned the case

on January 22, 2018, but was unable to secure any surveillance video of the

incident. He decided to charge Mr. Ward with murder because he determined that

Mr. Jackson was “walking down the street minding his business” when Mr. Ward

removed his jacket and beat Mr. Jackson “[f]or no reason.” Sgt.Willians further

stated that “if it was a robbery, the people that was with the defendant would have

come up and told us that[.]” Sgt. Williams testified that when Mr. Jackson was

admitted to UMC he had two razor blades and a pocketknife on his person. He

also testified that Mr. Jackson had a lengthy rap sheet, including 27 arrests and six

felony convictions for crimes such as simple burglary, theft, aggravated battery,

purse snatching and attempted simple burglary.

At the time of this incident, Mr. Ward was 25 years old without any history

of criminal record.

The trial court ordered a presentence investigation report through the Office

of Probation and Parole, which “recommended that Mr. Ward receive a sentence in

the range of 10 to 20 years in the Department of Corrections.” The report noted

that Mr. Ward was previously diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder and

depression and participated in bi-monthly therapy sessions with Dr. Alan Taylor in

Baton Rouge.

Considering that the defendant had no previous criminal record and was

awakened by someone going through his pockets while he was passed out in an

intoxicated state, a thirty-year sentence appears constitutionally excessive.