Juror Challenge

F-2018-477

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In OCCA case No. F-2018-477, Gerald L. Taylor appealed his conviction for Robbery with a Firearm and Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to affirm his conviction. One judge dissented. Gerald L. Taylor was found guilty of serious crimes, including robbery using a firearm and having a firearm when he was not allowed to have one due to past convictions. The trial took place in Oklahoma County, where the judge sentenced Taylor to a total of thirty-five years in prison. Taylor raised several issues on appeal. First, he argued that his incriminating statements should not have been allowed in court because he wanted to remain silent. The court looked at whether he had clearly stated this right. It found that even though he initially said he didn’t want to talk, he later chose to answer questions. Therefore, the court believed he willingly spoke to police after being informed of his rights and upheld the decision to admit his statements. Second, Taylor claimed that the trial judge made a mistake by not allowing the removal of a juror who he thought could not understand English well enough to participate in the trial. However, the judge questioned the juror and decided she was competent. Since Taylor had not properly objected to the juror's presence and even invited the situation, this issue was not considered a strong point for his appeal. Third, Taylor stated that his lawyer did not help him effectively, especially concerning the juror issue. However, the court found that despite any possible mistakes, the evidence against Taylor was very strong. His lawyer’s actions did not cause him to lose a fair trial. Lastly, Taylor claimed that even if no single error was enough to change his conviction, the overall combination of issues should lead to a new trial. The court ruled that there were no errors significant enough to warrant a new trial or change in his sentence. In conclusion, the court upheld the original judgment and Taylor's sentences, indicating that he received a fair trial despite his complaints.

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F-2004-389

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In OCCA case No. F-2004-389, the appellant appealed his conviction for robbery by force. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to reverse the conviction and remand the case for a new trial. One judge dissented. The case involved James Stephen Richardson, who was found guilty of robbery. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison and fined $1500. Richardson argued that his lawyer did not do a good job and that this impacted his defense. He claimed his lawyer failed to challenge a juror, did not question how he was identified by the victims, and did not find evidence that could help prove he was innocent. The court looked into Richardson's claims and decided to hold a special hearing to investigate his last point about ineffective assistance of counsel. During this hearing, it was revealed that there were certain jail policies regarding the clothing of inmates that were not properly investigated by Richardson’s attorney. The evidence showed that the items of clothing could not be released under the jail's rules, which could have helped Richardson’s case. The district court agreed that the lawyer did not conduct a reasonable investigation about this clothing policy. Because of this failure, the judge believed that the defense had a weaker case and that if this information had been presented, the outcome of the trial could have been different. The court decided that Richardson's attorney did not provide adequate legal help, which is why they reversed the original judgment. In summary, Richardson's case was sent back for a new trial because the court found that his lawyer did not do enough to support his defense, particularly regarding important evidence about the clothing policy at the jail.

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F-2004-643

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In OCCA case No. F-2004-643, Earnest Alphonzo Lee appealed his conviction for Attempted First Degree Burglary. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to affirm the judgment but modify the sentence to fifteen years. One judge dissented. Earnest Alphonzo Lee was found guilty by a jury of Attempted First Degree Burglary. The jury believed he deserved to go to prison for twenty years, and the trial court agreed with their decision. Earnest felt this was unfair, so he appealed his case. In his appeal, Earnest raised several issues he thought were wrong during his trial. The first issue was about something called an “evidentiary harpoon.” This means that he thought the arresting officer made a comment that brought up Earnest’s right to stay silent after he was arrested. The court looked closely at this and decided it was not a big deal because there was a lot of strong evidence proving he was guilty, which made the officer’s comment not harmful. The second issue was about a juror named Barker that Earnest wanted removed from the jury, but the judge did not agree. The court said this did not cause any problems since Earnest’s lawyer could have removed the juror another way. For the third issue, Earnest believed that the judge did not explain the punishment ranges to the jury correctly. The court agreed and said the law was not followed properly when the jury decided on the punishment. So, they changed Earnest’s sentence to fifteen years. The fourth issue claimed the prosecutor did something wrong during the trial, but the court found that this did not affect the outcome of the trial since there was still a lot of strong evidence against Earnest. In the fifth issue, the court believed there was enough evidence for the jury to find Earnest guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Finally, the sixth issue was about whether all the errors together were so bad that Earnest did not get a fair trial. The court decided that the problems were not serious enough to change the outcome of the trial. Overall, the court agreed that the trial had some mistakes but decided that the most important issue was the incorrect instructions about the punishment. They changed Earnest’s sentence to 15 years but said the rest of the trial was fair.

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