Lenore L. Prather

Ike Farris, a Hattiesburg attorney, was charged with conspiring to defraud the conservatorship of Jack Diamond, a businessman incapacitated by strokes, along with co-defendants including a police officer and another lawyer, with a deceased chancellor and others named as unindicted co-conspirators. A Forrest County jury convicted Farris of conspiracy, resulting in a sentence of five years in custody with two years suspended, a $5,000 fine, court costs, probation, and disbarment. The Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, holding that the indictment was sufficient, the evidence supported the jury's finding of Farris's participation in the conspiracy by a preponderance, and the trial court properly ruled on evidentiary admissions, motions to dismiss, and other procedural issues.

criminal law

This case involved a civil action brought by the Mississippi Attorney General on behalf of the City of Aberdeen and the Ethics Commission against City Manager Ralph Byars and his surety bond provider, alleging violations of state ethics laws (Miss. Code Ann. §§ 25-4-105(1), (3)(a), and (5)) arising from Byars's facilitation of city loans to a dentist who entered a lease-purchase agreement for Byars's property. The trial court dismissed all claims under Rule 12(b)(6), citing lack of alleged damages, failure to plead that Byars was a contractor or used confidential information for personal gain, and inapplicability of the bond to Byars's role as city manager. On appeal, the Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed dismissal only of the count under § 25-4-105(3)(a) regarding a material financial interest in a contractor but reversed and remanded on the remaining counts, holding that unspecified damages do not bar recovery, that the pleadings sufficiently raised issues of pecuniary benefit from official position, and that ambiguities in the bond required further proceedings rather than summary dismissal.

business & regulatoryprocedure

This case involved divorced parents disputing modification of a custody and visitation agreement for their infant son reached in December 1996, under which the mother had primary physical custody and the father had limited supervised visitation. Six months later the father sought to change custody or expand visitation, citing factors like the child's age and communication difficulties, and the chancellor modified the visitation schedule to grant the father substantially more time. The Court of Appeals affirmed, but the Mississippi Supreme Court reversed and reinstated the original agreement. The court held that the father had not produced sufficient proof of a material change in circumstances to justify amending the recent settlement so soon after it was reached.

family law

The case involved Johnny Dumas, who was indicted on multiple counts of cheating at blackjack under Mississippi Code § 75-76-301 by taking more than the amount won or altering game outcomes at the Lady Luck Casino, allegedly in concert with a dealer. After a jury trial featuring surveillance video and testimony from casino and gaming commission employees, Dumas was convicted on seven counts and sentenced to two years in prison plus a fine. On appeal, the Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed the convictions, holding that the evidence was sufficient for a reasonable jury to find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, including the videotape depictions and Dumas's initial denial of knowing the dealer despite familial connections. The court rejected challenges to the sufficiency of the evidence and the denial of motions for directed verdict or new trial.

criminal law

William Barrett sued Harold Parker for negligence after Barrett's car struck one of Parker's cows on a county road in Mississippi, resulting in personal injuries. Following a jury trial that returned a verdict for Parker, the trial court entered judgment accordingly and denied Barrett's post-trial motions. Barrett appealed, arguing primarily that the trial court erred by limiting evidence of prior incidents involving Parker's cattle to those occurring within one year before the accident. The Supreme Court of Mississippi affirmed the judgment, holding that the trial court's evidentiary rulings were within its discretion and that any error did not prejudice Barrett. The court reasoned that evidence of prior similar incidents is admissible only if substantially similar and that the one-year limit did not constitute an abuse of discretion warranting reversal.

torts & liabilityprocedure

This case involves David H. Massey's third petition for reinstatement to the practice of law in Mississippi after his 1990 disbarment following a felony conviction for conspiracy to distribute 2,400 ecstasy pills and 10 grams of cocaine. The Supreme Court of Mississippi denied the petition. The court held that Massey could never demonstrate the requisite moral character for reinstatement, reasoning that his crime as a mature adult in positions of trust reflected an extreme disdain for the law and disregard for public welfare inherent to major drug distribution, with no possible circumstances sufficient to show rehabilitation under the standards requiring a clear demonstration of reformed character.

criminal lawprocedure

In Stevens v. State, Glynn Stevens was convicted of manslaughter after a joint trial with two co-defendants for the April 1995 murder of Jason Brown in Hinds County, Mississippi, and was sentenced to twenty years in prison. On appeal, Stevens raised multiple issues, primarily contending that the trial court erred by denying his repeated requests for severance and by granting a co-defendant's motion in limine that barred any comment on that co-defendant's post-arrest silence. The Mississippi Supreme Court reversed the conviction and remanded for a new trial, concluding that Stevens was prejudiced because his defense was inconsistent with his co-defendants' and the joint trial plus the limine order prevented him from arguing that the silent co-defendant had something to hide. The court held that this constituted an abuse of the trial judge's discretion under the severance criteria from Duckworth v. State, while finding Stevens' remaining evidentiary and procedural claims without merit.

criminal lawprocedure

The case involved a wrongful death lawsuit brought by Margie Fortune after her husband and children died when their vehicle fell from a county bridge lacking guardrails on County Road 681 in Mississippi. Fortune alleged that the Lee County Board of Supervisors was negligent in failing to inspect, repair, and maintain the bridge in compliance with state law, including Miss. Code Ann. § 65-21-1. After an initial remand from the Mississippi Supreme Court in Fortune I, the trial court granted the Board's motion for summary judgment, finding the claims barred by the 1993 amendments to the State Tort Claims Act and sovereign immunity provisions in Miss. Code Ann. § 11-46-1 et seq. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the amendments applied because the prior interlocutory ruling did not constitute a final judgment vesting rights, and that sovereign immunity shielded the county from liability for the alleged negligence. The decision emphasized that no exceptions to immunity were warranted under the applicable law for this pre-1992 cause of action.

torts & liabilityprocedure

The case concerned Rhonda Allday's negligence lawsuit against the Mississippi Transportation Commission for injuries she sustained in a September 1992 car accident allegedly caused by a pothole on a state highway. The Commission argued that sovereign immunity barred the suit, based on the timing of this Court's earlier decision in Presley v. Mississippi State Highway Commission, which had struck down certain immunity provisions, and the Legislature's subsequent amendment to the statute. The court held that Presley's prospective application began only upon issuance of the mandate after denial of rehearing in December 1992, after the accident, so the claim was barred by immunity; it therefore did not reach the Commission's alternative arguments or Allday's cross-appeal on damages. The decision rested on the principle that judicial rulings on sovereign immunity apply prospectively from the final mandate date rather than the initial opinion.

torts & liabilityprocedure

David Foster appealed the denial of post-conviction relief after pleading guilty in 1994 to grand larceny and robbery as an habitual offender, receiving sentences of five and fifteen years without parole. He raised issues including the validity of his habitual offender enhancement due to indictment placement, the trial judge's alleged improper involvement in plea negotiations, breach of a plea agreement amounting to double jeopardy, the voluntariness of his plea, and ineffective assistance of counsel. The Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed the denial, finding the claims without merit because Foster waived objections by entering a valid guilty plea, some issues were procedurally barred for not being raised earlier, and the record did not support breach or involuntariness claims.

criminal lawprocedure

The case involved Larry Joe Humphrey, the unwed biological father of a child born during the mother's marriage to another man, who challenged the validity of an adoption by the maternal grandparents that proceeded without any notice to him and sought custody years later. The Mississippi Supreme Court held that the adoption was valid and that Humphrey was not entitled to notice under state statutes or common law. The court reasoned that Humphrey had not established a substantial relationship with the child before the adoption and that precedents like Lehr v. Robertson indicated no constitutional due process violation in the absence of such a relationship or a state registry for putative fathers. The court further upheld the trial court's denial of custody modification, finding no material change in circumstances to warrant altering custody from the adoptive grandparents despite later allegations involving the child.

family lawcivil rights

Justin Shaffer was indicted for capital murder but convicted by a jury of simple murder and sexual battery in the 1991 death of Rachel Marshall. The trial court sentenced him to life imprisonment for murder and a consecutive thirty-year term for sexual battery. On appeal, the Mississippi Supreme Court reversed the convictions and remanded for a new trial, finding reversible error in the trial court's failure to instruct the jury on the statutory elements of depraved-heart murder and its exclusion of evidence and cross-examination regarding the victim's alcohol and drug consumption. The court also identified error in submitting a non-existent combined verdict option of "murder and sexual battery" to the jury, though it noted these issues were evaluated together with the full record.

criminal lawprocedure

This case involved a dispute over child support arrears in Mississippi. After a 1979 divorce, Landon St. Peter fell behind on payments to his ex-wife for their two daughters; a 1988 court order found him $11,850 in arrears and set up a payment plan of $500 monthly. In 1996, the Mississippi Department of Human Services notified him of a remaining $2,827 delinquency and reported it to credit bureaus. The chancery court ruled there was no delinquency due to timely payments under the plan and ordered corrections to any reports, but the Supreme Court reversed that decision. The court held that unpaid child support vests as judgments upon becoming due and cannot be forgiven or stayed by judicial payment plans, so the arrears remained a reportable delinquency under state law authorizing DHS actions.

family law

The case involved a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the heirs of inmate Will Holmes, who died of meningitis in 1991 while in Mississippi Department of Corrections custody; the plaintiffs alleged negligence by prison doctors and medical staff for inadequate treatment. The trial court dismissed the suit based on sovereign immunity under a 1993 statute applied retroactively. The Mississippi Supreme Court held that the statute could not be applied retroactively to bar the claim, as sovereign immunity at the time of the events protected only the state and its subdivisions, not individual employees. However, the court concluded that qualified public official immunity protected the prison doctors and medical personnel from liability for medical treatment decisions, distinguishing prior precedent and affirming dismissal on that basis.

torts & liabilitycriminal law

The case involved Coy Carpenter, who was injured in a 1994 collision with a Southaven police officer and later sued the officer and the city for damages. Carpenter contacted the city's liability insurer in an attempt to settle but did not submit the formal notice of claim to the city's chief executive officer required by the Mississippi Tort Claims Act, and he filed suit more than a year after the accident. The Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed summary judgment for the defendants, ruling that the one-year statute of limitations barred the action because no valid notice had been given to toll it for ninety-five days. The court reasoned that the statute demands strict compliance with notice requirements regarding both the recipient and the detailed content of the claim, which the two-sentence letter to the insurer failed to satisfy, and that the city had not waived the defense by accepting the insurer contact.

proceduretorts & liability

The case involved White Cypress Lakes Water, Inc., a utility with a monopoly certificate to provide water service to residents in a rural Mississippi development, which sought approval from the Mississippi Public Service Commission for a monthly rate increase from $9.50 to $14.00 after five years at the prior rate. The Commission denied any increase, citing poor service quality based on resident complaints, and the chancery court affirmed. On appeal, the Mississippi Supreme Court reversed, holding that the denial was unsupported by substantial evidence because both the utility's experts and the Commission's own staff testified that an increase was necessary to avoid losses and maintain service, while resident testimony did not contradict the need for some adjustment. The court remanded the matter to the Commission to determine an appropriate increase supported by detailed findings of fact.

business & regulatory

This case involves J. Edmand Pace's petition for reinstatement to the practice of law after a six-month suspension imposed for unprofessional conduct, including failing to timely pursue a client's appeal, not informing the client of its dismissal, and retaining the client's payment. The Mississippi Bar opposed reinstatement, contending that Pace's $5,000 payment to the client settled a threatened malpractice suit rather than satisfying the ordered $1,750 restitution, and that he had not timely paid court costs or filed required affidavits. The court reviewed the record de novo under the standards of Rule 12 of the Rules of Discipline and Mississippi Code section 73-3-337, determined that Pace had made full amends and restitution, complied with notice requirements, shown remorse, and demonstrated rehabilitation through community involvement and character evidence, and granted the petition for reinstatement effective upon issuance of the mandate.

procedure

The case involved the Mississippi State Tax Commission's assessment of additional franchise taxes, interest, and penalties against Lady Forest Farms, Inc., after an audit for fiscal years 1989 and 1990, based on including a federal § 447(i) suspense account (holding accounts receivable and inventory from the cash method of accounting) in the corporation's state tax base as capital employed in the state. The chancery court ruled the Commission's actions arbitrary and capricious and vacated the assessment, and the Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed. The majority reasoned that the suspense account did not qualify as deferred income, deferred taxes, or other includible items under the plain language of Miss. Code Ann. § 27-13-9 defining the franchise tax base. A dissent argued that the account represented deferred income that should be included and that the Commission's interpretation was entitled to deference.

taxesbusiness & regulatory

The case involved a lawsuit by Justin Gressett against the Newton Separate Municipal School District alleging negligent failure to protect him from an assault by another student on August 26, 1993. The trial court granted summary judgment to the school district on sovereign immunity grounds, and the Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed. The court reasoned that Miss. Code Ann. § 11-46-3, effective April 1, 1993, preserved sovereign immunity for the state and its political subdivisions, including school districts under § 11-46-1(i), and that the statutory waiver for political subdivisions under § 11-46-5 did not take effect until October 1, 1993. Because the incident predated the waiver, the school district remained immune from suit.

torts & liabilityprocedure

The case involved Ellen Lackey seeking to recover funds embezzled from family trusts by her uncle Buster Lackey, who used some of the stolen money to purchase a life insurance policy benefiting his children. The Supreme Court of Mississippi reversed the chancellor's ruling that limited recovery to the premiums paid with trust funds, instead imposing a constructive trust on the policy proceeds to the extent that stolen trust property was used to purchase the policy. The court reasoned that when stolen or commingled funds are used for insurance premiums, the burden of proof shifts to the policy beneficiaries to demonstrate what portion, if any, was purchased with non-trust funds.

family lawpropertyprocedure