84, 88-89 (3) (842 SE2d 532) (2020). Davis v. State, 306 Ga. 140, 144(3), 829 S.E.2d 321 (2019). 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. 2. Look at Facebook, and Facebook looks back at you (Getty), After Torres and Norton were convicted, the Douglas County District Attorneys office said on its Facebook page that Following a review of over 10,000 pages of Facebook documents, law enforcement was able to locate numerous posts and messages indicating that members of the group were white supremacists who discussed attending KKK rallies, joining Skinheads Nation, and making numerous derogatory remarks about African Americans as a whole.. endobj Not only did Count 4 of the indictment in this case track the language of the statute, but it contained other information sufficient to place Torres on notice of the charge against him. Jose Torres, left, weeps in his seat while during his sentencing at the Douglas County Courthouse in Douglasville, Ga., Monday, Feb. 27, 2017. On Monday, Superior Court Judge William McClain, who described the pairs actions as being motivated by racial hatred, sentenced Torres to 20 years, with 13 to serve in prison, and Norton to 15, with six to serve. 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. Jose Ismael Torres and Kayla Rae Norton Douglas County Sheriff's Office The Georgia group called itself Respect the Flag, and prior to the attack was seen driving in a Rickman, C. J., and McFadden, P. J., concur. 0000017752 00000 n at 395 (2). Accordingly, the trial court did not err in sentencing Torres on his terroristic threats conviction. 1. As he sentenced the duo, judge McClain castigated them for their behavior. Site Map, Advertise| [T]he essential elements of terroristic threats and acts are: (1) a threat to commit any crime of violence (2) with the purpose of terrorizing another.[1] Poole, 326 Ga. App. Please read our Commenting Policy first. They were found guilty earlier this month. It was when they pulled them guns and said Im gonna shoot the little bastards.. Torres asserts, without any citation to authority, that threatening to shoot an individual does not constitute a threat suggesting the death of the threatened victims. Torres next asserts that his trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance by failing to file a general demurrer to the terroristic threats count of his indictment. Not until the following October, almost three months later, were members of Respect The Flag indicted for their activities in July. According to court testimony, Kayla Rae Norton, 25, and Jose Ismael Torres, 26, were acting as part of a group that called themselves Respect the Flag. On July 24 and 25, 2015, the group rode through Douglaston, Georgia, in pickup trucks that were flying American, military and Confederate flags. We conclude that the trial court did not err in denying Torress motion for a new trial on this ground. WebJose Ismael Torres is on Facebook. 565, 569 (1) (b) (845 SE2d 305) (2020) (citation and punctuation omitted). She was even used to hearing the type of slurs hurled at her and her guests. The Daily Report is honoring those attorneys and judges who have made a remarkable difference in the legal profession. A jury found Jose Ismael Torres guilty of making terroristic threats, Pamela Jo Bondi, Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Kaylee D. Tatman, Assistant Attorney General, Daytona Beach, for Appellee. Alford, 46, and other victims sat in the jury box on Monday through much of the sentencing hearing. /P 0 Advertisement. In Christian, 347 Ga. App. >> What happened to you is absolutely awful.. Two days after the party, on July 27, 2015, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that authorities were investigating the videos to determine if anything illegal happened. Id. Relatives. All rights reserved. 0000043358 00000 n Contact an Account Specialist [emailprotected] | +1-855-808-4530 (Americas) | +44(0) 800 098 86009 (UK & Europe), Perkins Coie Lays Off 58 Business Professionals, Cravath Set for English Law Debut with Shearman Double Partner Hire, Early Reports: 2023 Am Law 200 Financials, Proskauer Lands Cooley Strategy Leader in New C-Suite Role, AI Has Gone Mainstream. Victims react as the sentences are read. See id. This is perfect for attorneys licensed in multiple jurisdictions or for attorneys that have fulfilled their CLE requirement but need to access resourceful information for their practice areas. Case No. She is a two-time James Beard Award finalist and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. After the jurors returned to deliberate, the trial court asked counsel whether counsel had any concerns or objections. 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 jurors did not request additional charges or state that they needed any additional information. 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. We find no reversible error in the trial courts response to the question. The trial court recharged those definitions and repeatedly ensured that the jurors understood the recharge. I think the tears were mainly because they got caught, Alford said. I accept responsibility for what I did, but that was not me. WSB-TVs coverage also quoted Norton as saying, The worst decision Ive ever made in my life was to not walk away when I had the chance. Jose Torres did not address the court or any courtroom witnesses during his sentencing hearing, but Kayla Norton did speak to birthday-party guests who were in court that day. District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fifth District. The Judge Criticized Douglasville Police For Not Arresting Anybody at the /Size 65 See Bryant v. State, 306 Ga. 687, 689(1), n. 2, 832 S.E.2d 826 (2019); Christian v. State, 347 Ga.App. at 247(2), 756 S.E.2d 322 (citation and punctuation omitted). Join Facebook to connect with Jose Ismael Torres and others you may know. Jon Schuppe is an enterprise reporter for NBC News, based in New York. /Metadata 44 0 R at 394 (2), the defendant threatened to stab a man, gangrape his wife, and shoot up the couples apartment. BERGER, WALLIS, and EISNAUGLE, JJ., concur. Jose Ismael Torres, 26, and Kayla Rae Norton, 25 reportedly parents of three children were found guilty earlier this month of violating the states street-gang Rickman, C. J., and McFadden, P. J., concur. I forgive you. A jury found Jose Ismael Torres guilty of making terroristic threats, criminal street gang activity, and three counts of aggravated assault. 0000004985 00000 n The constitutional purpose for identifying the victim is to apprise the defendant of the charges against him. Torres must satisfy both prongs of the Strickland test, and if he is unable to satisfy one, we need not examine the other. 45 20 0 A jury found Jose Ismael Torres guilty of making terroristic threats, criminal street gang activity, and three counts of aggravated assault. See Maynard v. State, 355 Ga. App. Victims look on as the sentences are read. Widner, 280 Ga. at 677(2), 631 S.E.2d 675 (citation and punctuation omitted). xref Your Real Estate Legal and Brokerage Expert. EpiPens dont work in space? 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Norton and Torres were charged with aggravated assault, making terroristic treats and violating the Georgia Street Gang Act. Judgment affirmed. Not only did Count 4 of the indictment in this case track the language of the statute, but it contained other information sufficient to place Torres on notice of the charge against him. 243, 247 (2) (a) (756 SE2d 322) (2014) (citation and punctuation omitted). Its inexplicable to me that you werent arrested by the police that day.. ", Count 4 of Torres's indictment alleged the essential elements of the offense, tracked the language of the terroristic threats statute, and sufficiently placed Torres on notice of the crime with which he was charged and against which he was required to defend. All Rights Reserved. 584, 587(6), 666 S.E.2d 674 (2008). Long Waits, Short Appointments, Huge Bills. Certified Lawyer Dyer v. State, 167 Ga.App. Copyright 2023, Thomson Reuters. 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. During the course of what authorities called a drunken rampage which inspired a flurry of 911 calls from witnesses along their route, the group shouted racist epithets and pointed guns at black drivers, and harassed black customers at a Paulding County Wal-Mart and a nearby convenience store. The indictment closely tracked the language of OCGA 16-11-37(b),2 which states that "[a] person commits the offense of a terroristic threat when he or she threatens to [c]ommit any crime of violence [w]ith the purpose of terrorizing another[,] or [i]n reckless disregard of the risk of causing the terror." at 247 (2) (citation and punctuation omitted). Jose Ismael Torres, 26, will spend 13 years in prison; Kayla Rae Norton, 25, is to serve six years, Atlanta news outlets report. Local police came under fire on the day of the attack for choosing not to arrest any of the aggressors. We disagree. 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 v. THE STATE. This claim lacks merit. Torres first asserts that the trial court abused its discretion by failing to completely answer a question posed by the deliberating jury. %PDF-1.4 ! 2052. 310, 311(3), 306 S.E.2d 313 (1983) (citations and punctuation omitted). They used racial slurs and threatened to kill some of the party goers. On Monday, Alford said, Kayla Nortons tears may have come from remorse. The video posted above showed police officers holding back the mostly black party guests while the parade of Confederate flag trucks drove past. A jury found Jose Ismael Torres guilty of making terroristic threats, criminal street gang activity, and three counts of aggravated assault. She said she could see he was scared on Monday, but she also remembered his rage on that summer day nearly two years ago. 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). (WXIA), More people plead guilty to the crime and are serving lighter sentences. Aimed to help Insurers prevent, prepare and prevail In adjudicating complex claims, negotiating settlements and winning cases. Superior Court Judge William McClain sentenced Torres and Kayla Rae Norton, right, to lengthy prison terms Monday for their role in the disruption of a black child's birthday party with Confederate flags, racial slurs and armed threats. Most of the flag group members were sentenced to misdemeanors or put into diversion programs. Roof, who was sentenced to death for his crime, brandished the battle flag in several photographs that came to light after his arrest. Torres and Norton have three children together, although they are not married. You didnt take a plea because you thought you were gonna get off. On February 26, Superior Court Judge William McClain sentenced Torres to 13 years in prison, and Norton to six. Two years ago, Jose Ismael Torres was sentenced to 20 years in prison. 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. Want to discuss? Phipps, Senior Appellate Judge. Kayla Rae Norton, 25, and Jose Ismael Torres, 26, were convicted this month of violating the state's street-gang terrorism law and have been held without bond as they await sentencing. The punishment currently prescribed for a terroristic threats conviction reads as follows: [a] person convicted of the offense of a terroristic threat shall be punished as a misdemeanor; provided, however, that if the threat suggested the death of the threatened individual, the person convicted shall be guilty of a felony and shall be punished by a fine of not more than $1,000.00, imprisonment for not less than one nor more than five years, or both. . Torres also claims in a one-paragraph argument that his five-year sentence on the terroristic threats count is void because Count 4 only charged a misdemeanor, not a felony. [c]ommit any crime of violence . Both wept as the sentences were handed down Monday in Douglas County, west of Atlanta. He noted that the pair would both have been aware of white supremacist Dylann Roofs attack on a predominantly black Charleston church that left nine dead less than a month before. A trial court has a duty to recharge the jury on issues for which the jury requests a recharge. Dozier v. State, 306 Ga. 29, 32 (3) (829 SE2d 131) (2019) (citation and punctuation omitted). The sentencing comes in the aftermath of the recent sentencing of white supremacist, Dylan Roof who had massacred nine African-Americans at a Charleston church, with the youth using the Confederate flag as a symbol on his See Bautista v. State, 305 Ga.App. The investigation included a review of thousands of Facebook pages that identified members of the Respect the Flag as white supremacists who discussed attending Ku Klux Klan rallies, joining a skinhead group and made derogatory remarks about black people, Fortner said. Instead, the trial judge inadvertently applied it to the drug trafficking charge pursuant to section 893.135(1), Florida Statutes (2015). 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.. The constitutional purpose for identifying the victim is to apprise the defendant of the charges against him. Accept responsibility for what i did, but that was not me the legal profession treats and violating Georgia! A duty to recharge the jury on issues for which the jury requests a.... Trial court did not err in sentencing Torres on his terroristic threats, street. 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