Davis v. State
| Docket Number: | 2007-CP-00224-COA | |
| Court of Appeals: |
Opinion Link Opinion Date: 02-26-2008 Opinion Author: MYERS, P.J. Holding: Affirmed |
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| Additional Case Information: |
Topic: Post-conviction relief - Sentence - Amendment of statute - Section 97-21-33 Judge(s) Concurring: KING, C.J., LEE, P.J., IRVING, CHANDLER, GRIFFIS, BARNES, ISHEE, ROBERTS AND CARLTON, JJ. Procedural History: Dismissal; PCR Nature of the Case: CIVIL - POST-CONVICTION RELIEF |
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| Trial Court: |
Date of Trial Judgment: 01-17-2007 Appealed from: Calhoun County Circuit Court Judge: Andrew K. Howorth Disposition: MOTION FOR POST-CONVICTION COLLATERAL RELIEF DENIED. Case Number: C2006-160 |
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| Party Name: | Attorney Name: | Brief(s) Available: | ||
| Appellant: | NIGEL O’NEIL DAVIS |
NIGEL O’NEIL DAVIS (PRO SE) |
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| Appellee: | STATE OF MISSISSIPPI | OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL BY: STEPHANIE B. WOOD | ||
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: | Post-conviction relief - Sentence - Amendment of statute - Section 97-21-33 |
| Summary of the Facts: | Nigel Davis pled guilty to two counts of uttering a forgery and was sentenced to one year for each count, fined $1,000, and ordered to pay restitution. He filed a motion for post-conviction relief which was denied. He appeals. |
| Summary of Opinion Analysis: | Davis argues that because the statute under which he was sentenced was amended in 2003, his crime is classified as a misdemeanor; and the most he should be sentenced to serve is not more than six months in the county jail and to pay a fine. During the time the indictment was handed down, section 97-21-33, as it read in 2002, allowed the judge discretion to sentence Davis to serve a maximum term of six months and/or pay a fine of $1,000, if his conviction of forgery had been in an amount under $100. Davis, however, was indicted for two separate counts of forgery in amounts exceeding $100. Thus, at the time of indictment, the trial judge was mandatorily required to sentence Davis to serve a term of not less than two years nor more than fifteen years in the penitentiary. But, by the time Davis entered his guilty plea and was sentenced in 2004, the statute had been amended. The 2003 amendment granted the trial judge discretion to sentence a person convicted of forgery to serve a maximum term of six months in the county jail and/or pay a fine up to $1,000, if the amount forged was less than $500. The trial judge had the discretion to impose the lesser penalty under section 97-21-33; however, he was not required to impose such a sentence. While the statute does allow for a more lenient sentence for forgeries of lesser amounts, the statute also allows the trial judge to sentence an individual convicted of uttering a forgery to the maximum sentence. Thus, the trial judge’s sentencing Davis for each count to serve one year and assessment of a $1,000 fine did not exceed the statutory guideline and was not in error. |
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