Justia Mississippi Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

Perry Armstead was convicted of two counts of sale of cocaine and was sentenced as a habitual offender and subsequent drug offender to thirty-two years’ imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Armstead appealed, arguing that the was denied his constitutional right to confront the witnesses against him. Finding no error, the Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed Armstead’s convictions and sentences. View "Armstead v. State of Mississippi" on Justia Law

In January 1993, four days before his trial for the unrelated charges of aggravated assault and rape was set to begin, Charles Crawford broke into the home of Kristy Ray, kidnapped her, left a ransom note, and took her to a secluded barn in the woods. Crawford then raped and killed her. He claimed to have had two blackouts, one immediately before abducting Kristy, and one before her death. Crawford described everything he claims he could remember and that after he awoke from the second blackout, Kristy was dead at his feet. Crawford said he must have killed Kristy, but he could not remember doing so. He told the investigators that he sometimes had blackouts and could not control himself. This matter went before the Mississippi Supreme Court on Crawford’s Application for Leave to File Successive Petition for Post-Conviction Relief attacking his conviction for capital murder and death sentence. Also before the Court was the Response by the State and Crawford’s pro se Application for Leave to File Successive Petition for Post-Conviction Relief. After review, the Court concluded Crawford showed neither first PCR counsel nor trial counsel was deficient, nor has he shown prejudice due to any of the alleged errors raised in his appeal. The Court therefore denied both Crawford’s application for leave to proceed and his pro se application for leave. View "Crawford v. Mississippi" on Justia Law

Richard White was convicted of burglary of a dwelling. The jury was instructed it could find White guilty of burglary of a dwelling if it found he broke and entered the home “with the intent to commit the crime of larceny and/or assault therein.” While the jury was instructed on the elements of aggravated assault, it was not given any instruction on the definition of larceny. On appeal, a divided Court of Appeals affirmed his conviction. Consistent with its recent decision in "Windless v. Mississippi," (185 So. 3d 956 (Miss. 2015)), finding use of the word “larceny” as it was commonly used and understood by the general public was sufficient in this case to define for the jury the requisite intent needed to support a conviction of burglary, the Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeals as well as the trial court’s judgment and sentence. View "White v. Mississippi" on Justia Law

Rodney Rushing was indicted by grand jury of unlawful possession of six dosage units of amphetamine. A jury found Rushing guilty of the charged offense, and the trial court sentenced Rushing to three years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC), as a habitual offender pursuant to Mississippi Code Section 99-19-81 (Rev. 2015). Rushing thereafter filed a motion for a judgment notwithstanding the verdict (JNOV) or in the alternative, a motion for a new trial, which the trial court denied. He then filed a notice of appeal. On appeal, appellate counsel for Rushing filed a "Lindsey" brief, stating there were no arguable issues on appeal. Having reviewed the record, the Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s judgment of conviction and sentence. View "Rushing v. Mississippi" on Justia Law

A jury convicted Randy Wilson of receiving stolen property in violation of Mississippi Code Section 97-17-70. The trial court sentenced Wilson to ten years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. He appealed his conviction and sentence, challenging the evidence presented against him at trial, and arguing he received ineffective assistance of trial counsel. Finding no error, the Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed Wilson’s conviction and sentence. View "Wilson v. Mississippi" on Justia Law

Joshua Hurst was convicted by a jury on two counts of murder, two counts of aggravated assault, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. He appealed, arguing that his constitutional and statutory rights to a speedy trial were violated, and also that the trial court erred by declining to order a mistrial for a discovery violation. Finding no merit to these arguments, the Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed Hurst's convictions. View "Hurst v. Mississippi" on Justia Law

Dequane Lomax was indicted by grand jury on two counts of forcible rape and two counts of simple assault on a law-enforcement officer. The circuit court severed Count I from Counts II, III, and IV. Lomax then proceeded to trial on Counts II, III, and IV in March 2014. Lomax was convicted of Count II, forcible rape, and found not guilty of Counts III and IV, simple assault on a law enforcement officer. The Mississippi Supreme Court found cumulative error occurred at trial that deprived Lomax of the right to a fair trial. Therefore, the Court reversed the judgment and remanded this case for a new trial. View "Lomax v. Mississippi" on Justia Law

John Hale was convicted on four counts of sale or transfer of a controlled substance and was sentenced as a habitual offender to serve a total of sixteen years’ imprisonment without the possibility of parole. On appeal, Hale, represented by the Office of Indigent Appeals, argued that the trial court erred in denying his proffered jury instructions on the defenses of involuntary intoxication and entrapment. Hale also has filed a pro se supplemental brief, in which he raised various other issues. Finding no error, the Supreme Court affirmed Hale’s convictions and sentences. View "Hale v. Mississippi" on Justia Law

A jury convicted Archie Quinn of capital murder, and the trial judge sentenced him to life in prison, without the possibility of parole. Quinn appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing: (1) that the jury was incompletely instructed on the elements of the crime; and (2) that he received ineffective assistance of counsel. The Supreme Court found that the trial judge properly instructed the jury and therefore affirmed on that issue. The Court also found that the record in this case did not “affirmatively show” ineffective assistance of counsel. As such, the Court affirmed Quinn’s conviction, but dismissed his ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim without prejudice to his right to raise it in a proper petition for post-conviction relief. View "Quinn v. Mississippi" on Justia Law

A jury convicted Preston Overton of possession of cocaine and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The day before trial, the defense disclosed its intent to call two witnesses, but the circuit judge excluded their testimony as a discovery sanction. Because the record lacked any evidence that the defense made its late disclosure to gain a tactical advantage, the circuit judge erred by excluding Overton’s witnesses. So the Supreme Court reversed Overton’s convictions and remanded this case for a new trial. View "Overton v. Mississippi" on Justia Law