Oklahoma State Law

F-2018-1190

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This document is a summary opinion from the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals regarding the case of Walter Lee Roundtree, who was convicted of violations related to the Sex Offender Registration Act. The court found against him on several propositions of error, including claims of insufficient evidence, double jeopardy, improper sentencing enhancements, and ineffective assistance of counsel. **Key Points from the Opinion:** - Roundtree was convicted of two counts: Violation of the Sex Offender Registration Act and Failure to Comply with the Act, with the jury recommending sentences of four and five years, respectively, to be served consecutively. - The court addressed several legal propositions raised by Roundtree, concluding that the evidence supported the convictions, and there was no violation of double jeopardy laws. - Roundtree's assertion of ineffective assistance of counsel was also denied, as the court found that he did not demonstrate sufficient prejudice from his attorney's performance. - The court ultimately affirmed the judgment and sentences while denying a request to supplement the appeal record due to a lack of evidentiary support. **Judicial Opinions:** - Judge Lumpkin authored the opinion affirming the judgments. - Judge Lewis concurred in part but dissented on the affirmation of Count 1, arguing that Roundtree's single act of moving should not subject him to multiple punishments under the law. The court's ruling underscores the importance of establishing clear legal standards for crimes and how multiple offenses are treated under similar circumstances.

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F-2013-11

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In OCCA case No. F-2013-11, James Earl Darton appealed his conviction for first degree murder, possession of a firearm after a felony conviction, and domestic assault and battery. In a published decision, the court decided to affirm Darton's convictions and sentences while modifying the sentence for the domestic assault and battery charge. One judge dissented. Darton was found guilty of killing Kimberly Ragland, who was found shot in her car. Prior to her death, Ragland had a tumultuous relationship with Darton, which included a previous altercation that led her to seek a protective order against him. This protective order prohibited Darton from being near her, which he violated on the night of the murder. On that night, after a fight where Darton hit Ragland and used a stun gun on her, she was later taken away by Darton, where her murder occurred. Darton was arrested and claimed he had left with a different person. The jury found him guilty based on evidence presented during the trial, including his motive for killing Ragland due to financial loss from the protective order. In his appeal, Darton raised several issues. First, he argued that the sentence for domestic assault was improperly increased based on a law that was not applicable at the time of his offense. The court agreed that this was indeed an error and reduced his sentence for that charge. He also claimed evidence of his drug dealing should not have been allowed during the trial. However, the court found that this evidence was relevant to show Darton’s motive to murder Ragland since her protective order affected his ability to sell drugs. Lastly, Darton asserted that he did not have competent legal representation during his trial. The court reviewed his claims about his lawyer’s performance and ultimately decided that his attorney’s actions were part of a reasonable strategy and did not significantly harm Darton's case. Overall, the court affirmed most of the lower court's judgments but corrected the sentence related to the domestic assault charge.

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F-2011-1059

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In OCCA case No. F-2011-1059, Cristopher Lyn Kibbe appealed his conviction for various crimes, including Attempted Second Degree Burglary, Second Degree Burglary, Driving with a Revoked License, and Conspiracy to Commit Burglary. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to affirm the judgment and sentence on the second and third counts, but modify the sentence on the attempted burglary to ten years. One judge dissented. Kibbe was found guilty by a jury and received a twenty-year sentence for each of the first two counts, while a fine of $100 was imposed for driving with a revoked license. His trial raised several issues related to judicial conduct and evidence. First, Kibbe argued that his trial was shaped unfairly by improper comments or testimonies from the prosecution. He claimed that a police officer made prejudicial remarks. However, the court found that the trial judge acted appropriately by not ordering a mistrial, as the errors cited were not fundamentally harmful to the fairness of the trial. Second, Kibbe contended that the evidence presented was not enough to support the jury's decision. The court determined that the testimony from his accomplice was properly corroborated and sufficient to justify the jury's verdicts. Kibbe also claimed that he was denied his right to present a full defense. Parts of his statements to police were not allowed into evidence. However, the court noted that many of Kibbe's exculpatory statements were presented before the jury, so it was unclear if additional statements would have made a difference. The appeal included complaints about evidence used during the sentencing phase. Kibbe's prior convictions were mentioned, and he argued that they should not have been because they were from similar transactions. The court upheld the trial judge’s decision to allow those convictions as proper evidence for sentencing enhancement. Kibbe's claims of prosecutorial misconduct were largely dismissed as well. Although he pointed out several alleged wrongdoings by the prosecutor, the court found that the arguments did not amount to significant error. Ultimately, the court modified Kibbe's sentence on one of the counts due to a clear legal error regarding the length of the sentence. The court reduced this sentence from twenty years to ten years, which adhered to statutory guidelines. The court did not find that the cumulative errors impacted Kibbe’s right to a fair trial, and therefore, most of his convictions and sentences were upheld. The decision was to confirm the judgment on Counts 2 and 3, and modify the sentence on Count 1.

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C-2008-682

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In OCCA case No. C-2008-682, Floyd Ray Williams, Jr. appealed his conviction for manslaughter in the first degree, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, eluding an officer, and driving under suspension. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to grant part of his appeal and deny the rest. One judge dissented. Williams had entered a nolo contendere plea, which means he did not admit guilt but accepted punishment for the crimes charged. He was sentenced to a total of 51 years in prison and fines for the various offenses. Williams later tried to withdraw his plea, claiming he had not been given the right information about his punishment and that his lawyer had not helped him properly. The court looked closely at Williams’s arguments. They agreed that he did not know he could get jail time for driving under suspension, so they decided to cancel that one-year sentence. However, they found that his pleas for the other charges were made with understanding, and he couldn't show that he would have acted differently if he had known the correct punishments for the other counts. The judges also believed that the prison sentences were not too harsh, and Williams didn’t prove that his lawyer had done a poor job. Since they found that all but one of Williams's claims were not valid, they denied those parts of the appeal. As a result, the court ordered the lower court to fix a small mistake in the paperwork regarding Williams’s plea and the specific laws he was charged with breaking. The end decision allowed Williams to be resentenced for one specific charge and made sure all details were correct in the official records.

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F-2007-690

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In OCCA case No. F-2007-690, Eduardo Rivera Fajardo appealed his conviction for trafficking in illegal drugs, failure to obtain a drug tax stamp, and possession of paraphernalia. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to affirm the conviction on the latter two counts and to modify the sentence for the drug trafficking conviction. One member of the court dissented. Fajardo was found guilty of trafficking in cocaine and marijuana, failing to obtain a tax stamp for these drugs, and possessing drug paraphernalia. He was sentenced to a total of 44 years in prison and hefty fines. The appeal raised several issues including whether there was enough evidence for the convictions and whether the arguments made by the prosecutor were improper. The court ruled that the evidence presented at trial was sufficient to find Fajardo guilty. However, the court noted that the prosecutor had exceeded appropriate arguments during the trial. Still, they determined that this did not deprive Fajardo of a fair trial since the evidence against him was strong. However, the court recognized that the way the punishment was presented to the jury was confusing and that it could have affected the sentence given to Fajardo for drug trafficking. As such, they decided to modify Fajardo’s sentence for that conviction from 44 years to 25 years in prison along with a reduced fine. Ultimately, the court affirmed the conviction on the drug tax stamp and possession charges but modified the prison sentence for drug trafficking, ensuring that any errors in the trial process were addressed.

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F-2005-1058

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In OCCA case No. F-2005-1058, Shaynathian Rashaud Hicks appealed his conviction for multiple charges including indecent exposure, attempted rape, injury to a minor child, and others. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to reverse the conviction for indecent exposure and remand it with instructions to dismiss. The remaining convictions were affirmed. One judge dissented regarding certain aspects of the opinion. To explain further, Hicks was tried and found guilty of several serious offenses. These included lewd acts like indecent exposure and attempted rape. The jury gave him a total of different sentences, with the most time for his attempted rape and injury to a minor child. Hicks felt that the evidence against him was not strong enough and presented several reasons why he thought he should win his appeal. He argued that there wasn't enough proof to show that his actions qualified as indecent exposure. The court agreed and reversed that conviction, saying the evidence didn’t show he acted in a lewd way. However, for the other charges like attempted rape and injury to a minor, the court found the evidence sufficient, so his convictions for those remained in place. Hicks also had a problem with the way the trial was conducted. He claimed that he wasn’t able to confront all the witnesses against him because some of their testimonies were taken without them being present at the trial. But the court decided the trial was fair and followed the rules. Hicks felt that mistakes were made in how the jury was instructed about the law and that the prosecutor acted unfairly during the trial. The court looked into these claims, but most were either waived or didn’t have a significant impact on the trial's outcome. In summary, while the court reversed his conviction for indecent exposure due to a lack of evidence, it upheld the other convictions because they found there was enough evidence for those offenses. Hicks’s overall arguments did not lead to a change in the other convictions, which means he must serve his sentences as determined by the jury.

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F 2002-1009

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In OCCA case No. F 2002-1009, Rodney Jerome Burton appealed his conviction for trafficking in illegal drugs (cocaine base) and possession of a controlled dangerous substance within 1000 feet of a public park. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to affirm the conviction for trafficking in illegal drugs, but it dismissed the conviction for possession of a controlled dangerous substance within 1000 feet of a public park. One judge dissented. Burton was found guilty of trafficking in cocaine and possession of drugs near a public park. The jury recommended sentences of twenty years for trafficking and ten years for possession, which were to be served at the same time. Burton raised several reasons for his appeal, claiming that the evidence was not strong enough to support the verdicts, and that there were other problems in the trial. The court examined each of his claims, finding that there was enough evidence to support the trafficking conviction. They also decided that the jury was not pushed to come to a verdict and that the trial court followed the rules correctly regarding other pieces of evidence. It was determined that the remarks and actions of the prosecutor did not unfairly affect Burton's trial. The court concluded that there was no error regarding the prior photograph and that Burton's trial lawyer did a good job. Even though Burton wanted to benefit from a change in the law that might have helped him, the court said he was not entitled to that benefit because it didn’t apply to his case. Overall, the court upheld the sentence for trafficking but overturned the possession sentence, telling lower courts to dismiss that charge.

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F-2001-313

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In OCCA case No. F-01-313, *Steven Wayne Robertson* appealed his conviction for *Attempted Burglary in the First Degree* and *Assault with a Dangerous Weapon*. In an unpublished decision, the court decided to affirm the convictions but modified the sentences to run concurrently. One judge dissented. Robertson was found guilty by a jury for two crimes. He was accused of trying to break into a house (attempted burglary) and attacking someone with a weapon (assault). The jury decided to give him a ten-year prison sentence for each crime, which would usually mean he would spend twenty years in prison, but the court later decided he would serve both sentences at the same time, totaling ten years. Robertson claimed that it was unfair to punish him twice for what he said was one event. However, the court concluded that the two charges were based on different actions and that he could be punished for both. They looked at the evidence, like a witness who saw him with an axe, showing he was dangerous. He also said he should have had the chance to argue that he only caused damage to property instead of trying to break in, but the court found that this was not needed based on the facts of the case. Finally, Robertson thought he did not get a fair trial because of some things the prosecutor said during the trial. The court agreed that there were improper comments but still decided to keep the guilty verdicts and just change the sentences so that he would serve ten years instead of twenty.

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C-1999-766

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In OCCA case No. C-1999-766, Larnell Baucom, Jr. appealed his conviction for Trafficking in Illegal Drugs. In a published decision, the court decided to reverse the trial court's ruling and allow Baucom to withdraw his guilty plea. One judge dissented. Baucom had pleaded guilty to the crime of Trafficking in Illegal Drugs and received a ten-year prison sentence along with a suspended fine. Later, he wanted to withdraw his guilty plea, claiming that his attorney had given him incorrect advice regarding his potential sentence. The court looked at the case thoroughly, reviewing all records, transcripts, and Baucom's arguments. The main issue was whether the trial court was right to deny Baucom's request to withdraw his plea. The court found that Baucom’s attorney did not provide effective legal support, which led to Baucom entering his plea based on wrong information. Therefore, the court ruled that he should get the chance to withdraw his plea if he wants to. The dissenting opinion said that Baucom did not prove his plea was not knowingly made and that there was no strong evidence of improper advice from his lawyer. The dissenting judge argued that it was not the court's responsibility to act as Baucom's lawyer or raise issues that were not directly claimed by him.

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