State v. Stemle
State v. Stemle
Dissenting Opinion
Dissents.
IU respectfully dissent and would deny the writ application.
Concurring Opinion
additionally concurs and assigns reasons:
hi agree with the conclusion reached by the majority; however, I write separately to emphasize the exceedingly rare circumstances of this matter which, in my view— and importantly, the view of the trial judge who heard evidence in this case—warrants recusal of the Orleans District Attorney.
Louisiana Code of Criminal Procedure article 61 imbues the district attorney with “the entire charge and control of every criminal prosecution instituted or pending in his district, and determines whom, when, and how he shall prosecute,” and, in accord with this awesome power granted by the legislature, I believe that recusal of a district attorney should be limited to only the most extraordinary cases. However, I believe this matter falls into that category.
The district attorney, through his assistant district attorneys, is a party in almost all cases in Judge White’s division. While Judge White
As noted in my concurrence in State ex rel. Morgan v. State, 15-0100 (La. 10/19/16), _ So.3d _, 2016 WL 6125428, we take a solemn oath to uphold the laws of this state. Louisiana law insists on a fair and impartial administration of justice in all matters. Por reasons assigned, the exceedingly rare recusal of the Orleans District Attorney and the appointment of the Louisiana Attorney General are warranted in this case. The integrity and the reputation of our judicial system demands no less.
GENOVESE, J.,
11 Would deny the writ.
. While the issue in this case is the defendant’s recusal motion, Judge White testified that she does not believe that she can get a fair trial and has no objection to the defendant’s motion. Specifically, she testified under oath that she "does not like him (the district
Opinion of the Court
11 Granted. The ruling of the court of appeal is reversed and the district court’s ruling granting defendant’s motion to re-cuse the district attorney is reinstated. The court of appeal vacated the recusal order, citing State v. Ellis, 13-1401 (La. App. 4 Cir. 2/4/15), 161 So.3d 64, finding that defendant failed prove the district attorney treated him differently in the management of his case. However, given the highly unusual circumstances created by the ongoing professional relationship between the district attorney and his employees and Judge Laurie White, it was reasonable for the district court to find “the situation presented raises questions as to whether the district attorney’s ability to fairly and impartially perform his duties has been impaired,” and thus recusal was warranted. See State v. King, 06-2383, p. 9 (La. 4/27/07), 956 So.2d 562, 567 (La. C.Cr.P. art. 680 embodies a policy requiring recusal even when impartiality arises “unconsciously and despite [the district attorney’s] earnest assertions to the contrary.”).
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.