"A general demurrer challenges the validity of an indictment by asserting that the substance of the indictment is legally insufficient to charge any crime, and it should be granted only when an indictment is absolutely void in that it fails to charge the accused with any act made a crime by the law." WebTORRES v. The STATE. >> Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our, Digital WebJose Ismael Torres, Wewahitchka, pro se. Strickland, 466 U.S. at 687(III), 104 S.Ct. startxref Our Team Account subscription service is for legal teams of four or more attorneys. Norton and Torres were charged with aggravated assault, making terroristic treats and violating the Georgia Street Gang Act. X ! A man and a woman were sentenced Monday to 13 and six years in prison, respectively, for joining a group of Confederate flag supporters who in 2015 drove around a small Georgia community threatening people, including a gathering of African-Americans celebrating a young boy's birthday. You gamble, you win or you lose.. Two years ago, Jose Ismael Torres was sentenced to 20 years in prison. The punishment currently prescribed for a terroristic threats conviction reads as follows: OCGA 16-11-37(d)(1). Prosecutors say that Norton and Torres started using menacing language. FindLaw.com Free, trusted legal information for consumers and legal professionals, SuperLawyers.com Directory of U.S. attorneys with the exclusive Super Lawyers rating, Abogado.com The #1 Spanish-language legal website for consumers, LawInfo.com Nationwide attorney directory and legal consumer resources. Torres argues on appeal that the jurors note requested a complete recharge of all the jury instructions and not simply a recharge of the definitions of the offenses. The pair had joined a group called Respect the Flag that drunkenly drove around Georgias Douglas and Paulding counties over two days in July 2015. Want to discuss? Site Map, Advertise| License our industry-leading legal content to extend your thought leadership and build your brand. [4] 3. Nortons Facebook posts also indicated that after the rampage, she spent a lot of time and effort on what the DA called a wide sweeping attempt to get all members of the Respect The Flag group to coordinate their stories, lie to the media about what happened, and cover up her role in retrieving the shotgun from Torres truck, loading it, and giving it to him just before the confrontation with guests at the birthday party. The trial court recharged the jury as to elements of a crime, the State's burden of proof, and the definitions of the charged offenses. stream Also on Facebook, Norton promised not to snitch on Torres or anyone else involved in the two-day spree. Webin the district court of appeal of the state of florida fifth district not final until time expires to file motion for rehearing and disposition thereof if filed jose ismael torres, appellant, v. case no. All rights reserved. Despite the multiple 911 calls inspired by Respect The Flags actions, when Douglasville police arrived at the childs birthday party they did not make any arrests. They even threatened to kill children at the party. A jury found Jose Ismael Torres guilty of making terroristic threats, criminal street gang activity, and three counts of aggravated assault. Torres was allegedly in one of several trucks covered in Confederate flags that drove around Paulding and Douglas counties intimidating people who passed by. 210, 213 (2) (699 SE2d 392) (2010) (indictment survived general demurrer because it both tracked the language of the statute and described the acts constituting the offense sufficiently to put the defendant on notice of the offense with which he was charged). 565, 569(1)(b), 845 S.E.2d 305 (2020) (citation and punctuation omitted). Write to Joseph Hincks at joseph.hincks@time.com. When that gun was loaded, did you think about your children then? Alford said in an interview with the AJC on Tuesday. Confederate flag supporters at the South Carolina capitol. In order to establish that his trial counsel was constitutionally ineffective, Torres must show that his attorney's performance was deficient and that he was prejudiced by the deficient performance. First of all, at the time Torres committed the offenses in July 2015, OCGA 16-11-37(c) provided: "A person convicted of the offense of a terroristic threat shall be punished by a fine of not more than $1,000.00 or by imprisonment for not less than one nor more than five years, or both." The statute at that time contained no misdemeanor provisions. !, District Attorney Brian Fortner (Credit: Douglas County DA Facebook page). Although OCGA 16-11-37 was revised effective May 3, 2016, see Ga. L. 2016, p. 793, 2, in general, a crime is to be construed and punished according to the provisions of the law existing at the time of its commission. Widner v. State, 280 Ga. 675, 677 (2) (631 SE2d 675) (2006) (citation and punctuation omitted). The majority of police officers visible in the initial birthday-party cellphone video were white. Listed below are the cases that are cited in this Featured Case. He asserts that (1) the trial court abused its discretion by failing to completely answer a question posed by the deliberating jury, and (2) his trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance by failing to make a general demurrer to the terroristic threats count in the indictment. Stewart v. State, 246 Ga. 70, 72(2), 268 S.E.2d 906 (1980); accord Poole, 326 Ga. App. They waved Confederate flags from pickup trucks, made armed threats against black motorists, and hurled racial epithets at attendees to the 8-year-olds birthday party, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. We conclude that the trial court did not err in denying Torres's motion for a new trial on this ground. See id. Both wept as the sentences were handed Jon Schuppe is an enterprise reporter for NBC News, based in New York. All Rights Reserved. A man and woman in Douglas County, in Georgia, have each been given double-digit sentences for their part in crashing an African-American childs birthday party, in what the judge said was a hate crime. (WXIA), A metro Atlanta couple will be spending years behind prison bars after they were convicted of yelling racial slurs at a group of people celebrating a child's birthday party. I forgive all of you, Bryant said as Norton and Torres wept. Instead, the trial judge inadvertently applied it to the drug trafficking charge pursuant to section 893.135(1), Florida Statutes (2015). A jury found Jose Ismael Torres guilty of making terroristic threats, criminal street gang activity, and three counts of aggravated assault. In Christian, 347 Ga. App. The trial court found that trial counsel was not ineffective in this regard. Judgment affirmed. Although the jurors note contained a parenthetical reference to the 18-page document that comprised all jury instructions, the note specifically requested the definitions of the charges. The trial court recharged those definitions and repeatedly ensured that the jurors understood the recharge. Davis v. State, 306 Ga. 140, 144(3), 829 S.E.2d 321 (2019). Roofs murders inspired South Carolina to finally take down the Confederate flag that had flown on its statehouse grounds since the Civil Rights Era and this, in turn, inspired Norton, Torres and just over a dozen other members of a group called Respect The Flag to spend July 24 and 25 driving through majority-minority neighborhoods in a convoy of pickup trucks festooned with Confederate flags. A jury found Jose Ismael Torres guilty of making terroristic threats, criminal street gang activity, and three counts of aggravated assault. Two people have been jailed for their role in ruining a black child's birthday party with Confederate flags, racial slurs and armed threats. Before sentencing, Norton spoke directly to the family members who were at the party. Despite her earlier social-media attempts to cover up her actions and those of other Respect The Flag members during their two-day spree culminating at the birthday party, Norton told party-goers, according to Fox 5 Atlanta, that What happened to you was horrible. Assistant District Attorney David The disruption of the birthday party took place less than a month after white supremacist Dylann Roof killed nine African-Americans at a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina. Torres and Norton, from the state of Georgia, 621, 627 (2) (760 SE2d 630) (2014) (counsels performance cannot be deemed deficient for failing to file a general demurrer that would have been unsuccessful). They were found guilty earlier this month. . WhenKayla Norton broke down in court on Monday, Melissa Alford felt a twinge of sympathy. Torres first asserts that the trial court abused its discretion by failing to completely answer a question posed by the deliberating jury. Torres was convicted of pulling out a gun and threatening to kill people at the event. Torres contends that his trial counsel should have filed a general demurrer to Count 4 of the indictment the terroristic threats charge because the indictment did not name a specific victim in that count. Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter. Heres what you need to know about Torres, Norton and the results of their recent trial: Kayla Norton (credit: Douglas County DA Facebook page). See Maynard v. State, 355 Ga. App. Dyer v. State, 167 Ga. App. Kayla Rae Norton and her partner, Jose Ismael Torres, a gun at birthday party guests in her front yard. Other members of Respect the Flag pleaded guilty and received lesser sentences. On Monday morning, judge William McClain sentenced Torres to 20 years in jail, with a mandatory minimum of 13 years. . Accordingly, the trial court did not err in sentencing Torres on his terroristic threats conviction. Debevoise Is Ready. With Confederate battle flags attached to their trucks, they threatened African-American motorists and shoppers at a local Walmart and convenience store. As he handed down the sentence, Judge McClain noted the timing of the incident I dont think its a coincidence that this happened one month after the Charleston shooting, he said, referencing the mass shooting of nine black people inside Charlestons Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. 1. Kayla Rae Norton and her partner, Jose Ismael Torres, both wept copiously as Douglas County Judge William McClain passed sentence. Alford, 46, and other victims sat in the jury box on Monday through much of the sentencing hearing. 142, 143 (1) (834 SE2d 139) (2019) (a trial court is obligated to sentence a defendant pursuant to the statute in effect at the time he committed the offense). Related: Rebel Flag Fans Face Gang Charge for Crashing Black Kids Party. The incident came just days after a massacre at a Charleston church, where nine African-Americans were killed. Jose Ismael Torres was arrested Monday by Altamonte Springs police in a Volusia County hotel room. 0000001512 00000 n In fact, Torres's trial counsel specifically testified at the hearing on Torres's motion for a new trial that he did not file a general demurrer because although the indictment did not name a specific person, one or more video recordings showed several persons at the party. Although the jurors' note contained a parenthetical reference to the "18-page document" that comprised all jury instructions, the note specifically requested "the definitions of the charges." I am not a mean spirited person and Im sorry for your family that it had to come this far.. (citation and punctuation omitted). To meet the second prong, there must be a reasonable probability that, absent counsel's errors, the outcome of the trial would have been different. /Length 607 WebJose Ismael Torres is on Facebook. 149 863 S.E.2d 399. %%EOF Accordingly, the trial court did not abuse its discretion, and this enumeration of error fails. 0000004985 00000 n The constitutional purpose for identifying the victim is to apprise the defendant of the charges against him. >> Prosecutors said that the group threatened black motorists and walked up to one of their cars with a gun. 621, 627(2), 760 S.E.2d 630 (2014) (counsel's performance cannot be deemed deficient for failing to file a general demurrer that would have been unsuccessful). 361 Ga.App. But on the day Judge McClain passed sentence on Torres and Norton, he openly questioned why the Douglasville PD did not arrest any members of Respect The Flag at the birthday party, calling their inaction inexplicable and a very bad mistake. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that McClain told the couple that he didnt understand Why you werent arrested that day but [were] allowed to drive off in the protection of the authorities.. There were no objections to the court's decision. (WXIA), More people plead guilty to the crime and are serving lighter sentences. See Maynard v. State, 355 Ga.App. We likewise find that Torress threat to shoot the victims in this case suggested the death of the victims, and his five-year felony sentence would be lawful even under the current version of the statute. They eventually clashed with an African American family holding a birthday party, threatening them with a knife, tire iron and a gun. The next day they kept up their campaign and happened upon Alfords party for her 27-year-old son and her 8-year-old grandson. trailer The decision to conduct a rigorous investigation led to a successful outcome that best served our community., Jose Torres (credit: Douglas County DA Facebook page), Despite or perhaps because of the Douglasville PDs initial reluctance to arrest any Respect The Flag members, the Southern Poverty Law Center launched an investigation almost immediately after the July 2015 incident. Jose Ismael Torres, 26, will spend 13 years in prison and his partner Kayla Rae Norton, 25, is to serve six years for what a judge described as "actions motivated by racial hatred". A man convicted of terrorizing a child's birthday party with racial slurs is asking a judge for bond. State v. Grube, 293 Ga. 257, 260 (2) (744 SE2d 1) (2013). If that trigger would have gone off there would have been dead bodies all over that yard, Alford said. That is not me. WebView the profiles of people named Jose Ismael Torres. 0000000729 00000 n endobj Elizabeth Dalia Racine , Sean Garrett , Aimee Fatemeh Sobhani , for Appellee. Jose Torres and Kayla Norton were sentenced to lengthy prison terms for a two-day hate crime spree in Douglas County, Georgia, Raw video of Confederate flag rally, birthday party-goers clashing, Two people convicted in a confederate flag confrontation at a childs birthday party have been sentenced. WebJustia US Law Case Law Georgia Case Law Court of Appeals of Georgia Decisions 2021 JOSE TORRES v. THE STATE. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Here, Torres failed to establish deficient performance. PHIPPS, Senior Appellate Judge. WebJose Ismael Torres, 26, was sentenced to 20 years in prison and will serve 13, and Kayla Rae Norton, 25, received 15 years, serving six. District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fifth District. Jose Torres, Phillip Torres, Robert Torres. Click on the case name to see the full text of the citing case. /Names << /Dests 29 0 R>> Law.com Compass includes access to our exclusive industry reports, combining the unmatched expertise of our analyst team with ALMs deep bench of proprietary information to provide insights that cant be found anywhere else. Dozier v. State, 306 Ga. 29, 32(3), 829 S.E.2d 131 (2019) (citation and punctuation omitted). They caused so much mayhem, McClain said, 911 call centers were flooded with calls. ! Each attorney is granted unlimited access to high quality, on-demand premium content from well-respected faculty in the legal industry along with administrative access to easily manage CLE for the entire team. We likewise find that Torres's threat to shoot the victims in this case suggested the death of the victims, and his five-year felony sentence would be lawful even under the current version of the statute. But if youre driving around waving Confederate flags and using the N-word everywhere you go, then theres only one way to interpret that.. The video posted above showed police officers holding back the mostly black party guests while the parade of Confederate flag trucks drove past. Accordingly, the trial court did not err in sentencing Torres on his terroristic threats conviction. Strickland, 466 U.S. at 687 (III). at 881 882 (II). 5D164395 Decided: February 02, 2018 The jurors did not request additional charges or state that they needed any additional information. WebB2 dailybusinessreview.com TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2023 DAILY BUSINESS REVIEW BROWARD U.S. DISTRICT 23-cv-80259-RLR, Chanel, Inc. v. Eye of the Needle Palm Norton was sentenced on one count of violating Georgias street gang act and one count of making terroristic threats. [w]ith the purpose of terrorizing another[,] or . 5 = / q n k p k M. << This claim lacks merit. 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