Okla. Stat. tit. 21 § 51.1a Archives

F-2017-963

Post author:Staff
Post published:January 16, 2020
Post category:F

In OCCA case No. F-2017-963, Randall Duane Throneberry appealed his conviction for Lewd Acts with a Child Under 16. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to affirm the conviction and the sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. One judge dissented. Randall Duane Throneberry was tried and found guilty in an Oklahoma court for lewd acts with an child under the age of 16. The jury recommended that he be sentenced to life in prison without any chance for parole because he had a prior conviction for a similar crime. The case began when a young girl named R.F. reported that Throneberry had molested her while she was sleeping on a couch. The events happened in August 2015 when R.F. and her mother were staying at a family friend's house, where Throneberry was also visiting. One night, while R.F. was sleeping, Throneberry was found standing too close to her and had his hand under her blanket. The next morning, R.F. woke up to find Throneberry touching her inappropriately. During the trial, Thorneberry argued that some testimonies regarding R.F.'s behavior after the incident should not have been allowed, claiming that it unfairly impacted the jury. However, the court ruled that this evidence was relevant to show the credibility of R.F.'s testimony. Throneberry also challenged the admission of testimony from another victim, D.W., who had been molested by him when she was seven years old. The court allowed this testimony as it demonstrated Throneberry's pattern of behavior. Despite Throneberry's claims, the court found that the testimony was relevant and important for the case. Throneberry's argument that his life sentence without parole was unconstitutional was also denied. The court stated that the sentence was not excessively harsh compared to the serious nature of the crime and Throneberry's history of similar offenses. The judge noted that sentencing is ultimately a matter for the legislature, and in these kinds of cases, severe punishments are justified. In summary, the court upheld Throneberry's conviction and life sentence, finding no errors in the trial or the evidence presented. The judgment was affirmed, with one judge expressing a different opinion.

RE-2009-1019

Post author:Staff
Post published:February 22, 2011
Post category:RE

In OCCA case No. RE-2009-1019 and RE-2009-1020, the appellant appealed his conviction for the revocation of his suspended sentences. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to modify the full revocation of his seven-year suspended sentences to a three-year revocation with four years remaining suspended. One judge dissented. The case involved the appellant, who had previously pleaded guilty to multiple drug charges and received a suspended sentence. Later, the State accused him of violating his probation by committing new crimes. The judge found enough evidence to revoke his entire suspended sentence, which the appellant contested. The appellant argued that a small amount of marijuana found in a car he was driving was not enough to prove he controlled it because it was not his car. He also claimed that revoking his entire sentence was too harsh and should be changed. However, the court upheld the judge's finding that the appellant indeed had control over the marijuana since he was driving the car alone and had acknowledged ownership of the drug paraphernalia in the car. The court found merit in the appellant's argument about the harshness of the punishment because the reasons for revoking the full sentence were incorrect. The judge had based his decision on prior allegations that didn't hold up to factual scrutiny during the revocation hearing. The violations were also deemed minor and were not even prosecuted. In the end, the court decided to cut the original seven-year full revocation down to three years while keeping four years suspended, demonstrating that the punishment still reflected the violations but was fairer given the circumstances.

RE-2009-1020

Post author:Staff
Post published:February 22, 2011
Post category:RE

In OCCA case No. RE-2009-1019, Rico Raynelle Pearson appealed his conviction for revocation of his suspended sentences. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to modify the revocation from a full seven years to three years with four years remaining suspended. One judge dissented. The case involved two prior cases where Pearson pleaded guilty to drug-related charges and received a suspended sentence of seven years. However, the State filed an application to revoke his suspended sentence after he allegedly committed new violations, including possession of drugs and traffic offenses. During the revocation hearing, the judge determined that Pearson had violated his probation and revoked his suspended sentence completely. However, Pearson argued that the evidence against him was not strong enough and that the punishment was too harsh for the minor violations he committed. The appeals court agreed that the original decision to revoke the entire sentence was excessive because the stated reasons were not correct and the violations were minor. The court noted that one reason for the revocation was based on a misunderstanding regarding earlier convictions that were not relevant. Consequently, they reduced the length of the revocation while still affirming the revocation of some portion of his sentences.

F-2008-60

Post author:Staff
Post published:May 21, 2009
Post category:F

In OCCA case No. F-2008-60, Valenta E. Thompson appealed his conviction for multiple serious crimes including first-degree rape, sodomy, kidnapping, and witness intimidation. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to uphold some of the convictions while reversing others. One judge dissented. Valenta E. Thompson faced serious charges in the District Court of Muskogee County. He was found guilty by a jury of crimes that included rape and sodomy, among others. The jury recommended significant sentences, leading to Thompson receiving life imprisonment for some charges and lesser sentences for others. In his appeal, Thompson raised many issues. He argued that he did not receive a fair trial, citing that he was not properly informed of the elements of some charges. Specifically, he mentioned that the jury wasn't instructed about the components necessary to prove anal sodomy and witness intimidation. These mistakes were recognized as severe enough to warrant a reversal of those convictions. Thompson also claimed that there was not enough evidence to support his conviction for rape, and he argued that incorrect jury instructions regarding his potential sentences impacted his case. In addition, he pointed out that the prosecutor had made improper comments during the trial about plea deals, and that his own lawyer did not provide adequate representation throughout the process. The court carefully reviewed all the arguments and the entire record of the case. They found that the lack of instruction for some charges was a significant error. This was particularly true for witness intimidation, where the jury did not understand what needed to be proven for a conviction. Because of this, those specific counts were reversed. However, regarding the charge of first-degree rape and other offenses, the court found enough evidence to support the convictions. The judges determined that despite the errors concerning instructions, Thompson's sentences for the remaining counts were appropriate and should be upheld. In conclusion, the court affirmed the judgments and sentences for most of Thompson's convictions while reversing and remanding the convictions related to anal sodomy and witness intimidation for further proceedings. Some judges agreed with this decision, but one judge dissented, believing that the convictions should not have been reversed.

F-2007-200

Post author:Staff
Post published:June 5, 2008
Post category:F

In OCCA case No. F-2007-200, Jamie Cruz appealed his conviction for Indecent or Lewd Acts with a Child Under Sixteen. In a published decision, the court decided to affirm the judgment but reverse the sentences and remand for resentencing. One judge dissented. The case involved Jamie Cruz, who was found guilty on two counts of engaging in inappropriate conduct with an eight-year-old boy named T.M. Cruz was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for each count, to be served concurrently. The case had a long history of delays and court proceedings before it finally went to trial. During the trial, the evidence included Cruz’s admissions made during a polygraph examination he took while on probation. His defense argued that these admissions were wrongly obtained and that the trial court made errors in not considering his motion to suppress these statements. The trial court denied requests for continuances which the defense claimed were needed to prepare adequately for trial. Several arguments were made on appeal, including claims that the trial court should have suppressed the admissions made during the polygraph test because it violated his right against self-incrimination. Cruz argued that the compulsion to take the polygraph test because of his probation created a situation where he did not have a true choice, as refusing to comply could lead to his imprisonment. The court ruled that Cruz's rights were not violated. They said he had failed to assert his privilege against self-incrimination when he did not refuse to answer questions during the polygraph. The majority opinion found the polygraph examination was part of the conditions of his probation, and thus the admissions were not compelled in a manner that would invalidate them. Cruz also argued about other evidentiary issues during the trial, including the admission of prior bad acts as evidence and restrictions on jury selection. The court noted that while some of the trial court’s actions could be seen as problematic, they did not rise to the level of prejudice needed to overturn the conviction. In conclusion, while the court affirmed the convictions, they found that Cruz should not have received the life sentences as structured and directed that the case be sent back for proper resentencing under the relevant laws, as the previous sentencing did not follow the correct statutory guidance.

F-2006-1086

Post author:Staff
Post published:February 25, 2008
Post category:F

In OCCA case No. F-2006-1086, Anthony Paul Free appealed his conviction for Lewd Molestation. In a published decision, the court decided to reverse and remand for a new trial. One judge dissented. Free was found guilty of Lewd Molestation after an incident on December 10, 2005, involving a seven-year-old girl. The girl's aunt saw Free touching her inappropriately. During the trial, the State introduced evidence of Free's prior sexual offenses from twenty years earlier, which Free objected to. He argued that this evidence was unfair and did not relate to the current case. The court ultimately found that the past offenses had no clear connection to the current charges. They determined that using this older evidence was likely to prejudice the jury against Free, which isn't allowed. As a result, the trial court's decision to admit this evidence was seen as a substantial violation of Free's rights, leading the court to reverse the previous conviction and call for a new trial.

F-2006-854

Post author:Staff
Post published:September 13, 2007
Post category:F

In OCCA case No. F-2006-854, Delbert L. Gibson appealed his conviction for two counts of lewd molestation. In a published decision, the court decided to affirm his conviction but modified his sentence to twenty-five years imprisonment on each count, to be served concurrently. One judge dissented. Gibson was found guilty of sexually fondling two young girls, aged thirteen and eleven, in September 2002. During the incident, Gibson followed the older girl into a bedroom and began to fondle her. The younger girl was also fondled shortly after. The girls told their mother about the incident and reported it to the police. Gibson raised four main points of error during his appeal. The first claimed he did not receive a speedy trial. The court looked at how long he waited for the trial, why there was a delay, whether he asked for a quick trial, and if the delay harmed his case. Gibson was charged in November 2002 but was not arrested until March 2005, with the trial occurring in June 2006. The court found that even though the delay seemed long, Gibson did not complain about it before the trial, which hurt his argument. Therefore, the court believed he was not denied a speedy trial. Gibson's second point was about other-crimes evidence that was presented during his trial. The state brought up a past incident where Gibson had fondled a ten-year-old girl while working as a school photographer twenty years earlier. The court agreed that this evidence was probably not properly connected to the current case but felt it did not significantly impact the jury’s decision, especially since the two young girls provided strong testimonies. In his third point, Gibson argued the jury was incorrectly instructed on the penalties for his crimes. He believed that the law didn’t support a mandatory life sentence without parole based on the charges brought against him. The court analyzed the laws and determined that the proper penalties did not include mandatory life sentences, leading them to modify his sentence instead. Finally, Gibson claimed that all these problems together denied him a fair trial. Since the court found no major errors, the cumulative effect claim was also denied. Overall, the court upheld Gibson's conviction for molestation, but changed his sentence to a total of twenty-five years in prison instead of life without parole.

F-2005-716

Post author:Staff
Post published:July 3, 2007
Post category:F

In OCCA case No. F-2005-716, #Smith appealed his conviction for #Indecent or Lewd Acts with Child Under Sixteen. In an unpublished decision, the court decided #to reverse and remand for a new trial. #n dissented. In this case, Smith was found guilty of committing indecent acts with a young girl named T.C., who was ten years old at the time of the incidents. It all began when T.C. and her family traveled to Oklahoma due to the death of her grandmother. While in Oklahoma, Smith befriended T.C.'s parents and was allowed to spend time with T.C. while her parents worked. One day, Smith took T.C. to a swimming pool. Several women observed Smith engaging in suspicious behavior with T.C., such as fondling her and kissing her inappropriately. They felt that T.C. looked scared and uncomfortable. After watching the situation for about two hours, they called the police. The police spoke to T.C. and her parents, but at first, T.C. denied that anything inappropriate had happened. However, during the police investigation, Smith made troubling statements, including mentioning that he had previously been convicted of a similar crime against his own daughter. During the trial, T.C. testified that she thought of Smith like a grandfather and said he never touched her inappropriately at the pool. However, the other witnesses provided consistent testimonies about what they observed. The jury ultimately believed the eyewitnesses over T.C.'s denial of the abuse. Smith's defense argued that the evidence was not sufficient, and they challenged whether the trial was fair. They also raised several legal points regarding sentencing and the inclusion of evidence from past crimes. The court agreed with some of these points, particularly regarding the trial's fairness and the admissibility of evidence related to Smith's prior convictions. In the end, the court reversed Smith's conviction and ordered a new trial because they found issues in how evidence and instructions were handled during the original trial. Smith will now have another chance to contest the accusations against him.

F-2003-1278

Post author:Staff
Post published:January 31, 2005
Post category:F

In OCCA case No. F-2003-1278, James Lorenzo Devers appealed his conviction for Inducing a Minor to Engage in Prostitution and Indecent Proposal to a Child. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to affirm the convictions with some modifications. One judge dissented. Devers was tried in Tulsa County and found guilty of multiple charges involving sexual misconduct with teenage boys. The jury sentenced him to life imprisonment with fines after considering testimonies from three victims who claimed Devers offered them money to perform sexual acts. Despite some conflicting details regarding the timing of his proposal, the evidence against Devers was strong, including his own confession about some of the offenses. The appeal included several arguments. One claim was about the trial court's decision not to separate the charges for trial. The court maintained that the offenses were connected and reflected a consistent pattern of behavior, justifying their joint consideration. The court found no prejudice in trying the counts together. Devers also argued the jury was given incorrect instructions regarding the punishment for his indecent proposal charge. However, the court noted that the error did not change the outcome since he would have received the same sentence even under the correct guideline. Another point of appeal was regarding whether the jury was informed about parole eligibility. The court ruled the instructions were appropriate since the charges in question did not include those that required serving a certain percentage of the sentence before being eligible for parole. The court acknowledged that there was a mixing of punishment provisions in the instructions but decided any fines would be adjusted because of that error. Ultimately, after reviewing all claims, the court upheld the convictions but modified the fine amount for Devers' offenses. The judgment was affirmed with modifications, while one judge expressed disagreement with some aspects of the decision.