State Of Louisiana v. Juan Rivera

STATE OF LOUISIANA
COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT

STATE OF LOUISIANA NO. 2025 KW 0619

VERSUS

JUAN JOSE RAMOS RIVERA SEPTEMBER 8, 2025

In Re: State of Louisiana, applying for supervisory writs, 19th
Judicial District Court, Parish of East Baton Rouge, No.
DC-22-03053.

BEFORE : LANIER, WOLFE, AND HESTER, JJ.

STAY LIFTED. WRIT GRANTED. Louisiana Code of Criminal
Procedure article 729.7 permits, as in the instant case, the
district attorney to excise from a statement the identifying
information of any witness to a crime, if the district attorney
believes that the witness’s safety may be compromised by the
inclusion of such information. Further, if the information excised
by a party includes the substance, or any part thereof, of any
written or recorded statement of the witness, that party must
provide the excised substance, or any part thereof, to the other
party immediately prior to the witness’s testimony at the trial.
La. Code Crim. P. art. 729.7(B). Here, the State redacted
information from discoverable documents based on its concern for
witness safety. In response, the defendant followed the
appropriate procedure by objecting to the redaction in a written
motion. Pursuant to La. Code Crim. P. art. 729.7, prior to
determining whether or not the redaction should be maintained, the
district court must conduct an ex parte proceeding that is to be
recorded and maintained under seal, wherein the State must make a
prima facie showing why the redacted information should not be
disclosed to the defendant. In this matter, the record shows the
State was not afforded the opportunity to finish making the
requisite showing prior to the ex parte proceeding being halted.
Accordingly, the ruling ordering the State to provide unredacted
copies of the police reports in this matter is vacated and this
matter is remanded for a reopened hearing in accordance with the
dictates of La. Code Crim. P. art. 729.7, et seq.

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