Tag: Misdemeanor

Mississippi Court of Appeals Decisions of December 16, 2025

As the year draws the a close, the Mississippi Court of Appeals is finishing strong with seven opinions handed down today. There were three domestic relations cases, two felony appeals, one misdemeanor appeal, and an undue influence case.

Rasbeery v. State, 2024-KA-01005-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of possession of meth with a firearm enhancement, holding that the conviction of constructive possession was supported by sufficient evidence, that the verdict was not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence, and that the trial court did not err in denying a motion suppress the defendant’s roadside statements.
(10-0: McCarty for the Court)

Lucas v. Estate of Lucas, 2024-CA-01259-COA (Civil – Wills, Trusts & Estates)
Affirming the chancellor’s decision invalidating a gift and setting aside a deed, holding that the grantee did not provide sufficient evidence overcome the presumption of undue influence.
(10-0: McCarty for the Court)

J.T.S. v. M.L.S., 2024-CA-00023-COA (Civil – Domestic Relations)
Affirming in part and reversing in part a chancellor’s decision in a divorce case, holding that the Court had appellate jurisdiction, that the chancery court did not in dismissing several counts of the amended complaint, that the chancellor did err in modifying the life insurance provision of the divorce agreement, that the chancellor did not err in enforcing a provision limiting reimbursement of medical expenses, that the chancellor did not err in assessing post-judgment interest, that the chancellor did not err in finding that one party had no obligation to contribute to condo or allowance expenses, that the chancery court did not abuse its discretion in crediting payments as child support, that the chancellor did err in awarding attorney’s fees without specific findings, and that there was no merit to the claim that the chancellor was impartial.
(7-1-0: McDonald for the Court; Wilson concurred in part and in the result without writing; Lawrence and St. Pe’ did not participate)

Turner v. State, 2024-KM-01020-COA, consolidated with 2024-KM-01028-COA (Criminal – Misdemeanor)
Affirming convictions of speeding and careless driving on appeal from justice court, holding that the evidence was sufficient to support the conviction which was not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence and that the trial court did not impermissibly place the burden of proof on the defendant.
(10-0: McDonald for the Court)

Odom v. State, 2023-KA-01165-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of first-degree murder and armed robbery, holding that the jury was not so improperly instructed on self-defense as to warrant reversal and that the evidence was sufficient to support his conviction.
(9-1-0: Wilson for the Court; Barnes concurred in part and in the result without writing)

Bradshaw v. Bradshaw, 2024-CA-00882-COA (Civil – Domestic Relations)
Affirming judgment of contempt, holding that the chancellor did not err in finding the ex-husband in willful contempt for failing to pay court-ordered alimony or in reducing his monthly periodic alimony payment.
(10-0: Barnes for the Court)

Thornton v. Thornton, 2024-CA-00320-COA (Civil – Domestic Relations)
Affirming the chancellor’s judgment in a divorce case, holding that the chancery court did not abuse its discretion awarding joint legal and physical custody, that the chancellor did not err in distribution of marital property or in personal property.
(7-1-2: Barnes for the Court; Wilson concurred in part and in the result without writing; Carlton concurred in part and dissented in part, joined by McCarty)

Other Orders

  • Parra v. Rapid-American Corporation, 2023-CA-01196-COA (denying rehearing)
  • Buck v. State, 2024-KA-00025-COA (denying rehearing)
  • Tauzin v. Tauzin, 2024-CA-00141-COA (denying rehearing)

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Mississippi Supreme Court Decisions of October 17, 2024

The Mississippi Supreme Court handed down four opinions today. There is a petition for back pay from reinstated utility commissioners, a reversal of a personal injury verdict in Madison County because the trial court abused its discretion admitting expert testimony, an appeal of the denial of a motion for remittitur/new trial after plaintiff’s verdict in a contract case, and a direct appeal of a drug possession conviction.

Slaughter v. City of Canton, 2023-CA-01102-SCT Civil – Other)
Affirming the circuit court’s denial of a petition of former commissioners of the Canton Municipal Utilities Commission seeking back pay, holding that the circuit court lacked jurisdiction after the case became final upon issuance of the mandate affirming the circuit court’s prior reinstatement of the commissioners.
(9-0)

Scarborough v. Logan, 2022-CA-00965-SCT consolidated with 2023-CA-00720-SCT (Civil – Personal Injury)
Reversing on cross-appeal a plaintiff’s verdict in a personal injury case, holding that the trial court abuse its discretion by allowing expert testimony from a witness who was never qualified or tendered as an expert witness and dismissing the direct appeal issues as moot.
(9-0)

Stribling Equipment, LLC v. Eason Propane, LLC, 2023-CA-00862-SCT (Civil – Contract)
Affirming the trial court’s decision denying a new damages trial and/or remittitur, holding that the amount of damages was high but not shocking and was supported by the evidence.
(9-0)

Vivian v. State, 2023-KA-00338-SCT (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of felony possession of meth and misdemeanor possession of marijuana, holding that there were no errors wanting reversal based on counsel’s Lindsey brief and the record.
(9-0)

Other Orders

  • Roley v. Roley, 2022-CT-01104-SCT (dismissing petition for cert)
  • Nettles v. Nettles, 2023-CT-00041-SCT (granting cert)

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Mississippi Court of Appeals Decisions of August 20, 2024

The Mississippi Court of Appeals handed down nine opinions today. There are several direct criminal appeals, a personal injury case, and two real property cases.

Allen v. State, 2023-KA-00264-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of armed robbery, kidnapping, and aggravated assault with firearm enhancement, holding that there were no issues warranting reversal after reviewing counsel’s Lindsey brief and the record.
(9-0)

Aldridge v. South Tippah County School District, 2023-CA-00418-COA (Civil – Personal Injury)
Affirming summary judgment in favor of a high school in a personal injury case, holding that there was no evidence that the school breached any duty that proximately caused student’s injuries sustained in a locker room fight.
(6-3: McDonald concurred in part and dissented in part without writing; Carlton dissented, joined by Westbrooks, and joined in part by McDonald)

Galang v. State, 2023-KA-00006-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of sexual battery, holding that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in excluding videos from past sexual activity between the defendant and the victim or and that excluding a defense witness’s testimony for which no proffer was made was at most harmless error.
(9-0)

Connor v. State, 2022-KA-01288-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of first-degree murder, holding that the verdict was not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence.
(9-0)

Howell v. State, 2023-KM-00265-COA (Criminal – Misdemeanor) consolidated with 2023-KM-00270 (Criminal – Misdemeanor)
Affirming convictions of speeding and driving without a tag, holding that the evidence was sufficient and that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in not accepting the defendant’s father as an expert in the field of radar technology.
(8-1-0: Westbrooks concurred in result only without separate written opinion)

Note – Here is the trial court’s voir dire of the defendant’s father:

Trevino v. State, 2022-KA-01292-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of aggravated assault and felon in possession of a weapon but reversing conviction of theft of a motor vehicle with a value of more than $5,000 and $25,000, holding that the State failed to offer any evidence of the stolen truck’s value (an error the State confessed) and rendering since the State did not argue for remand and resentencing for any lesser-included offense.
(9-0)

Brown v. State, 2023-KA-00299-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of possession of a firearm by a felon, holding that section 97-37-5 does not violate the Second Amendment since the Mississippi Supreme Court has already said so.
(9-0)

Wiggs v. Boykin, 2023-CA-00496-COA (Civil – Real Property)
Affirming order of partition and award of an equitable adjustment resulting from the partition, holding that the defendant waived his argument that the petitioner failed to provide sufficient deraignments by not filing a Rule 12(e) motion for a more definite statement, that the chancellor’s determination of the amount of owelty was supported by substantial credible evidence, and that the chancellor did not abuse his discretion in denying the motion for new trial.
(9-0)

Richardson v. Estate of Richardson, 2023-CA-00650-COA (Civil – Real Property)
Affirming the chancellor’s grant of summary judgment for the Estate in a petition to confirm title and expunging liens from the county’s records, holding that the court of appeals’ prior mandate did not create a debtor-creditor relationship between the decedent and the petitioner and that there is no evidence of an enrolled money judgment that would provide the basis for the liens on the decedent’s property.
(9-0)

Other Orders

  • Collins v. Collins, 2022-CA-00903-COA (denying rehearing)
  • McLellan v. McLellan, 2022-CA-01006-COA (denying rehearing)
  • Lee v. City of Pascagoula, 2022-CA-01190-COA (denying rehearing)
  • Suarez v. State, 2023-KA-00526-COA (denying rehearing)

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Mississippi Court of Appeals Decisions of August 13, 2024

The Mississippi Court of Appeals handed down six opinions today. The court affirmed in two direct criminal appeals but reversed, dismissed, or vacated in each of the remaining cases. Those four consist of a divorce, a real property conveyance, a mechanic lien against real property, and a misdemeanor.

Osing v. Osing, 2022-CA-00755-COA (Civil – Domestic Relations)
Affirming in part and reversing in part the chancellor’s judgment in a divorce proceeding, holding that the chancellor did not err in denying the husband’s motion to withdraw consent to the irreconcilable-differences divorce, but reversing the chancellor’s division of the marital estate for failure to make sufficient factual findings and, as a result, reversed the chancellor’s award of alimony and a minor child’s college and health-insurance coverage pending reconsideration of the division of the marital estate.
(7-1-0: Wilson concurred in part and in the result without separate written opinion; Lawrence did not participate)

Campbell v. State, 2022-KA-01055-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of burglary of a dwelling, holding that there was sufficient evidence supporting the verdict and that the verdict was not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence, that the trial court did not err by referencing the grand jury proceedings, that there was no Brady violation regarding lost fingerprints, and that the trial court did not err in overruling a Batson challenge.
(8-0: Smith did not participate)

Alexander v. Espinoza, 2023-CP-01139-COA (Civil – Real Property)
Dismissing the appeal of a chancellor’s order denying declaratory relief, holding that the chancellor’s order was not a final judgment because it did not resolve all claims against all parties, and it did not contain 54(b) certification language.
(9-0)

In the Matter of the Estate of Johnson: Manners v. Estate of Johnson, 2023-CA-00823-COA (Civil – Wills, Trusts, & Estates)
Reversing the chancellor’s decision denying a claim to enforce rights under a document by which a decedent had intended to convey an interest in real property, holding that the document was a valid conveyance of an interest in the property and remanded for necessary parties to be joined and for further proceedings consistent with the opinions.
(9-0)

Carpenter v. State, 2023-KA-00580-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of two counts of child exploitation, holding that section 97-5-33(8) of Mississippi’s child exploitation statute is not unconstitutional for overbreadth or for supporting entrapment and holding that the verdict was supported by sufficient evidence.
(9-0)

NOTE – Here is the court’s description of section Miss. Code Ann. § 97-5-33(8):

Holt v. State, 2023-KM-00121-COA (Criminal – Misdemeanor)
Vacating and remanding dismissal of an appeal to the circuit court from a conviction of simple domestic assault originating in municipal court, holding that the circuit court erred by dismissing the appeal for failure to file a brief without giving notice of the deficiency and an opportunity to cure and that the record was insufficient to determine whether the circuit court had jurisdiction for want of posting a cost bond.
(7-1-0: Carlton concurred in result only without writing; Smith did not participate)

  • Bradford v. State, 2022-KA-00493-COA (denying rehearing)
  • Hutson v. Hutson, 2022-CT-00569-COA (dismissing motion for appellate attorney’s fees)
  • Taylor v. Johnson, 2022-CA-00734-COA (denying rehearing)
  • Brown v. Black, 2022-CA-00869-COA (denying rehearing)
  • Roley v. Roley, 2022-CP-01104-COA (denying rehearing)
  • Winstead v. State, 2022-KA-01235-COA (denying rehearing)
  • Smith v. State, 2023-KA-00185-COA (denying rehearing)
  • Magyar v. Shiers, 2023-CA-00682-COA (denying motion to dismiss appeal)
  • Brown v. State, 2024-TS-00741-COA (granting motion to proceed out of time)

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Mississippi Court of Appeals Decisions of January 16, 2024

The Mississippi Court of Appeals handed down eight opinions on Tuesday. The Court covered a lot of subject matter including trusts, unemployment benefits, workers’ comp, and several direct appeals of criminal convictions.

Rutland v. Regions Bank, 2022-CA-00720-COA (Civil – Wills, Trusts & Estates)
Affirming the circuit court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of a trustee who filed a dec action seeking a judgment that the trust did not have to pay funeral expenses, holding that the circuit court did not err in finding that the trust was irrevocable, was not terminated by a subsequent divorce, and that the contents of the trust should be disbursed to the children.
(10-0)

Black v. State, 2022-KA-01101-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of capital murder based on robbery, holding that the circuit court did not err in rejecting the defendant’s manslaughter instruction, in sustaining the State’s objection to defense counsel calling a detective a “liar” during closing, or in not issuing a cautionary instruction regarding the written transcript of the defendant’s interview with law enforcement.
(8-1-1: McDonald concurred in part and in the result without writing; Westbrooks concurred in part and dissented in part without writing)

Coe Law Firm PLLC v. MDES, 2022-CC-01285-COA (Civil – State Boards & Agencies)
Affirming the circuit court’s order dismissing the employer’s appeal of the MDES Board of Review’s order upholding the ALJ’s grant of unemployment benefits, holding that the employer failed to show good cause for not appearing at the ALJ de novo hearing and that issues of misconduct by the employee were therefore moot.
(10-0)

Jones v. State, 2022-KA-01199-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of attempted aggravated assault with a firearm enhancement, holding that the verdict was not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence.
(9-1-0: McCarty concurred in part and in the result without writing)

Simmons v. State, 2022-KA-01260-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of receiving stolen property and first-degree murder, holding that the circuit did not err in denying the defendant’s motion for JNOV where the evidence was sufficient for both conviction and that the verdict was not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence.
(10-0)

MTD Products, Inc. v. Moore, 2023-WC-00199-COA (Civil – Workers’ Comp)
Affirming the MWCC’s award of PPD for 50 weeks for an upper-left extremity injury, holding that substantial evidence support the MWCC’s finding that the claimant sustained a 25% industrial loss of use that exceeded her 15% functional medical impairment where the claimant’s job duties had to be modified and she was reassigned to different tasks after her injury.
(10-0)

Vlasak v. State, 2022-CP-01211-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Dismissing appeal of the circuit court’s denial of a motion for reconsideration after denying the defendant’s motion to modify sentence that was filed after a guilty plea that was filed after the term of court ended, holding that that the circuit court correctly found that this was essentially a direct appeal after a guilty plea.
(10-0)

Gilmer v. State, 2022-KM-00257-COA (Criminal – Misdemeanor)
Affirming the circuit court’s decision affirming the county court’s order dismissing an appeal of a conviction in justice court of willfully discharging a firearm towards a dwelling and disturbing the peace, holding that there was no error in dismissing the appeal after the defendant failed to appear at his trial de novo.
(8-1-0: Wilson concurred in part and in the result without writing; Emfinger did not participate)

Other Orders

Smith v. State, 2020-KA-00774-COA (denying rehearing)

White v. State, 2021-KA-00818-COA (denying rehearing)

Hobby v. Ott, 2021-CA-01305-COA (denying rehearing)

Ndicu v. Gacheri, 2022-CA-00415-COA (denying rehearing)

Wheeler v. Miss. Limestone Corp., 2022-WC-00534-COA (denying rehearing)

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Mississippi Court of Appeals Decisions of September 5

I was out of town last Tuesday, so I am circling back to last week’s decisions from the Mississippi Court of Appeals. The Court handed down three opinions on Tuesday. Two are direct criminal appeals and the other one is a child custody case.

Goode v. State, 2021-KA-01310-COA (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of murder and denial of post trial motions, holding that the trial court did not err in admitting photographs of the victim and his injuries or in denying the motion for directed verdict where there was testimony from three eyewitnesses and a medical examiner, that the verdict was not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence, and that the trial court did not err in refusing five of the defendant’s proposed jury instructions.
(8-2-0: Wilson and Emfinger concurred in part and in the result sub silentio)

NOTE – The first refused instructions was a peremptory instruction. The second was a definition of “reasonable doubt.” The third was a lesser-included instruction of heat-of-passion manslaughter which the trial court deemed forfeited when the defendant took the stand and denied shooting the victim. The fourth and fifth refused instructions were on eyewitness identifications which were properly refused because there were multiple eyewitnesses.

Urban v. Urban, 2022-CP-00195-COA (Civil – Custody)
Affirming judgment denying petition for modification of custody leaving the mother with full legal and physical custody, holding that the father received sufficient service for the Rule 59(e) motion which did not require a Rule 81 summons, that the chancellor did not err in finding that the mother showed a need to correct a clear legal error which the chancellor properly did, that claims of fraud by the mother and bias of the chancellor were procedurally barred, that there was no basis for the father’s claim that the chancellor admitted hearsay, that the equitable estoppel argument was procedurally barred, and that the issue of whether the chancellor should have adopted the GAL’s recommendations could not be addressed because the GAL report was not in the record on appeal.
(9-1: Barnes concurred in the result only sub silentio)

Kilcrease v. City of Tupelo, 2022-KM-00194-COA (Criminal – Misdemeanor)
Affirming the dismissal of an appeal from municipal court for lack of jurisdiction, holding that it lacked jurisdiction where the appellant failed to timely file an appearance bond to perfect her appeal to the county court.
(5-5: McDonald dissented, joined by Carlton, Greenlee, Westbrooks, and McCarty)

NOTE – The dissent first took issue with questions about whether the municipal court violated statutory and constitutional rights:

The dissent’s discussion of the timeliness of the appeal was interesting:

Other Orders

In the Matter of the Last Will and Testament of Mamie Elizabeth Pearson Bray, 2022-CA-00011-COA (denying rehearing)

Parker v. Canton Manor, 2022-WC-00206-COA (denying rehearing)

Applewhite v. State, 2022-KA-00290-COA (denying rehearing)

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