Black v. State
| Docket Number: | 2005-KA-00560-COA | |
| Court of Appeals: |
Opinion Link Opinion Date: 02-13-2007 Opinion Author: LEE, P.J. Holding: Affirmed |
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| Additional Case Information: |
Topic: Possession of firearm by convicted felon & Armed robbery - Sufficiency of evidence - Photographs - Cruel and unusual punishment Judge(s) Concurring: KING, C.J., MYERS, P.J., IRVING, CHANDLER, GRIFFIS, BARNES, ISHEE, ROBERTS AND CARLTON, JJ. Procedural History: Jury Trial Nature of the Case: CRIMINAL - FELONY |
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| Trial Court: |
Date of Trial Judgment: 08-11-2004 Appealed from: Hancock County Circuit Court Judge: Kosta N. Vlahos Disposition: CONVICTED OF COUNT I POSSESSION OF A FIREARM BY A CONVICTED FELON AND SENTENCED TO THREE YEARS, AND COUNT II ARMED ROBBERY AND SENTENCED TO FORTY YEARS, BOTH SENTENCES TO BE SERVED CONCURRENTLY IN THE CUSTODY OF THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS AS A HABITUAL OFFENDER. District Attorney: CONO A. CARANNA, II Case Number: B-2301-04-00147 |
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| Party Name: | Attorney Name: | |||
| Appellant: | WILLIAM RAY BLACK |
BRIAN B. ALEXANDER |
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| Appellee: | STATE OF MISSISSIPPI | OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL BY: JACOB RAY |
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Synopsis provided by:  If you are interested in subscribing to the weekly synopses of all Mississippi Supreme Court and Court of Appeals hand downs please contact Tammy Upton in the MLI Press office. |
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| Topic: | Possession of firearm by convicted felon & Armed robbery - Sufficiency of evidence - Photographs - Cruel and unusual punishment |
| Summary of the Facts: | William Black was convicted of one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and one count of armed robbery. He was sentenced as a habitual offender to three years for the possession of a firearm and forty years for armed robbery. He appeals. |
| Summary of Opinion Analysis: | Issue 1: Sufficiency of evidence Black argues that the State did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he was a felon in possession of a firearm or that he committed the armed robbery. However, Black admitted that the gun was his and a list of his felony convictions in Kentucky was included in the indictment. Prior to the robbery, Black’s neighbors saw him with the gun, and the neighbors heard him say he needed the gun in case he needed rob someone. This particular gun was identified in the security video from the robbery by the neighbor, Black owned the jacket identified by the Subway employees as worn during the robbery, and the Subway employees recognized Black’s blue eyes from a photograph of him. Issue 2: Photographs Black argues that the court erred in permitting a detective to testify regarding the photographs of Black and another man he showed to the Subway employees. The photographs were not introduced into evidence and only one witness made an in-court identification of Black. Black never sought the pre-trial suppression of the testimony of the eyewitness nor offered any contemporaneous objection to her testimony. The jury heard and observed the witness’s testimony, clearly believing that her reaction to viewing the photograph of Black’s eyes was sufficient for identification purposes. Issue 3: Cruel and unusual punishment Black argues that the court erred in sentencing him as a habitual offender in light of the constitutional prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. The supreme court has previously ruled that sentencing under Mississippi’s habitual offender statute does not violate the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. |
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