State Of Louisiana v. James Ray Leonard

Supreme Court of Louisiana
October 08, 2024
Chief Deputy Clerk of Court
For the Court
The Supreme Court of the State of Louisiana
STATE OF LOUISIANA
VS.
JAMES RAY LEONARD
No. 2023-KH-01511
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I
N RE: James Ray Leonard - Applicant Defendant; Applying For Supervisory Writ,
Parish of Ouachita, 4th Judicial District Court Number(s) 15 -F-0358, Court of
Appeal, Second Circuit, Number(s) 55,538-KH;
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October 08, 2024
Writ application denied. See per curiam.
WJC
JLW
JDH
SJC
JTK
JBM
PDG
10/08/2024 "See News Release 045 for any Concurrences and/or Dissents."

SUPREME COURT OF LOUISIANA
No. 23-KH-1511
STATE OF LOUISIANA
v.
JAMES RAY LEONARD
ON SUPERVISORY WRITS TO THE FOURTH
JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, PARISH OF OUACHITA
PER CURIAM:
Denied. Applicant fails to show that he was denied the effective assistance
of counsel during plea negotiations under the standard of Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984).
Applicant has now fully litigated his application for post -conviction relief in
state court. Similar to federal habeas relief, see 28 U.S.C. § 2244, Louisiana post -
conviction procedure envisions the filing of a successive application only under the
narrow circumstances provided in La.C.Cr.P. art. 930.4 and within the limitations
period as set out in La.C.Cr.P. art. 930.8. Notably, the Legislature in 2013 La. Acts
251 amended that article to make the procedural bars against successive filings
mandatory. Applicant’s claims have now been fully litigated in accord with
La.C.Cr.P. art. 930.6, and this denial is final. Hereafter, unless he can show that
one of the narrow exceptions authorizing the filing of a successive application
applies, applicant has exhausted his right to state collateral review. The district
court is ordered to record a minute entry consistent with this per curiam.
10/08/24