Reuben V. Anderson

The case involved Frank Mackbee, who was indicted in Lincoln County for the capital murder of Cicero Montgomery during a robbery and as a habitual offender under Mississippi law. After a change of venue, a Covington County jury convicted him of capital murder and imposed a death sentence. On appeal, the Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, finding sufficient evidence from witness identifications, the discovery of charred bodies in the burned vehicle, and related circumstances to support the jury's verdict. The court reversed the death sentence, however, and remanded for a new sentencing hearing due to procedural errors in the sentencing phase, including the sequence of determining habitual offender status and deficiencies in the jury instructions regarding aggravating factors such as "especially heinous, atrocious or cruel."

criminal law

This case involved a disciplinary proceeding against attorney Joe R. Odom brought by the Mississippi State Bar for mishandling proceeds from the sale of a client's estate property. Odom deposited estate funds into a personal and business account rather than a trust account, used the money for unrelated expenses, wrote checks to the estate's executrices that were initially dishonored due to insufficient funds, and failed to promptly distribute the money despite a court order. A Complaint Tribunal found violations of the Code of Professional Responsibility but no fraud or dishonesty and recommended a three-month suspension plus public reprimand; the Bar appealed seeking a harsher penalty. The Mississippi Supreme Court reversed the Tribunal's penalty and suspended Odom from practice for three years, reasoning that his commingling and conversion of client funds constituted a serious breach of trust warranting greater discipline, even though restitution was eventually made.

criminal lawprocedure

In Evans v. State, Anthony Evans was convicted in the Circuit Court of Copiah County on two counts of manslaughter by culpable negligence after his vehicle struck a stalled pickup truck on a highway, killing two men who were attempting to move it off the road. The Mississippi Supreme Court reviewed the evidence, including Evans' blood alcohol level of 0.20% and witness accounts of the accident, and determined that the proof did not establish the degree of negligence required for culpable negligence manslaughter but was sufficient to support a conviction for the lesser included offense of negligently causing death while operating a vehicle under the influence of intoxicating liquor. The court therefore affirmed the convictions but remanded the case for resentencing under Mississippi Code Annotated Section 63-11-30(4), which at the time limited each sentence to no more than five years.

criminal law

The case involved George W. Jackson's conviction for sexual battery in the Circuit Court of Warren County, Mississippi, resulting in a fifteen-year prison sentence. Jackson appealed, primarily arguing that the trial court should have granted a directed verdict because the prosecution failed to prove venue by establishing that the crime occurred in Warren County. The Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, holding that the trial judge correctly took judicial notice under Rule 201(b) of the Mississippi Rules of Evidence that the locations referenced in testimony—such as specific streets in Vicksburg—were within Warren County, as Vicksburg lies solely in that county. The majority distinguished prior cases where judicial notice was improper and found the evidence sufficient to support venue.

criminal lawprocedure

In Tandy Electronics, Inc. v. Fletcher, the appellant sued in circuit court to recover a balance due under a computer equipment lease and obtained a jury verdict in its favor for less than the full amount claimed. Tandy filed its notice of appeal thirty-two days after entry of the judgment, one day after the thirty-day deadline set by Mississippi Supreme Court Rule 4(a). The court granted the appellee's motion to docket and dismiss the appeal, ruling that Rule 2(a)(1) requires mandatory dismissal when a notice is not timely filed in a civil case and that Rule 2(c) prohibits extending the appeal time. The decision rested on the principle that the rules, modeled after the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure, must be strictly enforced like statutes of limitations, as an unenforced rule is no rule.

procedure

The case involved the Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance recommending the removal of Justice Court Judge C.L. Quick for failing to report numerous DUI and traffic convictions to the Department of Public Safety as required by state law. The Mississippi Supreme Court agreed with the Commission's findings that Quick had not filed abstracts for approximately 28 DUI cases within five days and 552 other traffic cases within 45 days over a three-year period. The court determined that this constituted willful misconduct in office and conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice. As a result, the court ordered Quick's removal from office effective November 22, 1989.

criminal lawprocedure