Opinion
2023-KP-01008
12-19-2023
STATE OF LOUISIANA v. LAURA DUGAS
IN RE: Laura Dugas - Applicant Defendant; Applying For Writ Of Certiorari, Parish of St. Martin, 16th Judicial District Court Number(s) 00-128813, Court of Appeal, Third Circuit, Number(s) 22-453;
Writ application denied.
JLW
JDH
WJC
JBM
Crichton, J., would grant and docket and assigns reasons.
Genovese, J., would grant and docket.
Griffin, J., would grant and docket for reasons assigned by Crichton, J.
Crichton, J., would grant and docket and assigns reasons.
"[S]entencing is a critical stage of the proceedings at which the right to the effective assistance of counsel is sacrosanct." State v. Aguliar-Benitez, 2021-00174, p. 7 (La. 10/10/21), 332 So.3d 618, 622 (Crichton, J., concurring). In State v. Harris, 2018-1012 (La. 7/9/20), 340 So.3d 845, this Court provided defendants with an opportunity to remedy a violation of this right. Determining to whom this remedy is available is, in my view, an imperative of this Court. As I have stated previously, "[a] ruling from this Court addressing the issues in Harris and any potential retroactivity of that decision would certainly be beneficial for lower courts in their application of La. C.Cr.P. art. 930.8." State v. Marcus Harris, 2021-01641, p. 1 (La. 1/19/22), 331 So.3d 321, 322 (Crichton, J., concurring). For these reasons, I would grant the writ application and docket the matter for full examination of this issue.