NEW ORLEANS, La. (KLFY) – The Louisiana Supreme Court has agreed to hear the appeal of a 2021 conviction that was overturned in 2022.

Brothers Shavis and Carlos Toby were convicted of 2nd degree murder and conspiracy to commit second-degree murder back in 2021. In early 2022, the conviction of Carlos Toby was overturned by the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal, stating that evidence provided by the state was insufficient in proving there was a conspiracy. Toby's sentence of 25 years in prison for conspiracy to commit murder was vacated.

He has been free man ever since.

Lafayette Assistant District Attorney Roya Boustany stated back in April 2023 that her office planed to take this case to the state supreme court to make sure Toby remains in prison.

Broussard's family believes the high court will send Carlos back to jail, though Carlos' attorney is not worried.

"This is a very, very unique case. It's not often at all that a court of appeal reverses a murder case, in this case, a conspiracy to commit murder. So, I'm not surprised at all the supreme court wants to take a closer look at it," Todd Clemons, the criminal defense attorney for Carlos Toby, said.

In the joint trial of both brothers, prosecutors pointed to a night at a Lafayette nightclub as a motive for the murder. Attorneys say local boxer Brandon Broussard beat Carlos Toby in a fight, and Toby wanted revenge, enacting the help of his brother to murder Broussard.

"He pled not guilty because he is not guilty. And the third circuit has reversed his conviction, so he's an innocent man. That's all we can say," Clemons added.

The appeals court also vacated Carlos' sentence about a year after the trial. Clemons said the state failed to prove their case.

"The state had a theory, but they had no evidence to support the theory. They had no proof of an agreement between Carlos and his brother or Carlos and anybody else to commit the murder of the young man," he told News 10.

Prosecutors with the 15th Judicial District pointed to cell phone tracking and video surveillance to prove their case. The appeals court decided the evidence presented was not sufficient to convict him.

"It's one thing to have a theory, but fortunately in America, you have to have evidence to support that theory. They had no credible evidence whatsoever to support that theory, and no matter what happens, that's not going to change. The record is clear," Clemons said.

The 15th Judicial District, however, believes the appeals court got it wrong. For last year, they've asked the Louisiana Supreme Court to hear the case. On Wednesday, the high court decided they will.

"Once they do a thorough review of the record, I think they're going to be convinced that there is no evidence that Carlos Toby conspired with anyone to commit a murder," Carlos Toby's attorney concluded.

News 10 also spoke with Brandon Brousard's mother about the Louisiana Supreme Court now hearing this case. She said she believes Carlos Toby was the mastermind in her son's murder.

She hopes the supreme court will overturn the appellate court's decision and send Carlos Toby back to jail to serve his initial 25-year sentence.

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