Champluvier v. State
| Docket Number: | 2003-CT-02581-SCT Linked Case(s): 2003-CT-02581-SCT ; 2003-KP-02581-COA ; 2003-KP-02581-COA |
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| Supreme Court: | Opinion Link Opinion Date: 11-09-2006 Opinion Author: Carlson, J. Holding: Reversed and Rendered |
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| Additional Case Information: |
Topic: Embezzlement from limited liability company - Section 97-23-19 Judge(s) Concurring: Smith, C.J., Waller, P.J., Diaz, Graves and Dickinson, JJ. Dissenting Author : Randolph, J. Dissent Joined By : Easley, J. Concur in Part, Concur in Result 1: Cobb, P.J. Without Separate Written Opinion Procedural History: Jury Trial Nature of the Case: CRIMINAL - FELONY Writ of Certiorari: Yes Appealed from Court of Appeals |
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| Trial Court: |
Date of Trial Judgment: 01-15-2004 Appealed from: DESOTO COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT Judge: GRAY EVANS Disposition: Deborah Champluvier was tried and found guilty by a DeSoto County jury on November 4, 2003. At a subsequent sentencing hearing, the trial judge sentenced Champluvier to concurrent sentences of five years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections, with four and one-half years of each sentence suspended, followed by two years of house arrest pursuant to Miss. Code Ann. §§ 47-5-1001, -1015 (Rev. 2004). District Attorney: JOHN W. CHAMPION Case Number: CR2001-456O/D |
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| Note: | The judgment of the Court of Appeals is Reversed and Rendered. See the original COA opinion at http://www.mssc.state.ms.us/Images/OPINIONS/CO31341.PDF | |
| Party Name: | Attorney Name: | |||
| Appellant: | Deborah Champluvier a/k/a Deborah Marie Champluvier |
PRO SE |
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| Appellee: | State of Mississippi | OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL: JEFFREY A. KLINGFUSS |
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| Topic: | Embezzlement from limited liability company - Section 97-23-19 |
| Summary of the Facts: | Deborah Champluvier was convicted of two counts of embezzlement from a limited liability company. She was sentenced to concurrent sentences of five years, with four and one-half years of each sentence suspended, followed by two years of house arrest. Champluvier appealed, and the Court of Appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court granted certiorari. |
| Summary of Opinion Analysis: | Champluvier argued that since she was accused of stealing from an LLC, she was guilty of no crime under the provisions of section 97-23-19, which applied only to corporations and private persons. In any embezzlement prosecution under section 97-23-19, the State is required to prove the identity of the “incorporated company,” or the “private person,” as the case may be. The current section 97-23-19 and its predecessors have been a part of our code in some shape or form at least since Hutchinson’s 1848 Code. The current Mississippi Limited Liability Company Act,§§ 79-29-101, et seq., was enacted by the Legislature effective July 1, 1994. The Legislature, as recently as 2003, amended section 97-23-19, and thus was presented with a golden opportunity, if it chose to do so, to further revise this statute to include the more modern business entities, such as limited liability companies, limited partnerships, professional corporations, professional associations, and the like. The Legislature, in its wisdom, chose not to do so. Champluvier was charged by a grand jury indictment with embezzling funds from a limited liability company in violation of section 97-23-19. Consistent with URCCC 7.06 and case law, no defendant should be charged with the responsibility of going beyond the clear language of an embezzlement indictment and perusing the civil statutes of this state to determine if an entity specified in Title 79 of the Mississippi Code Annotated can be classified as an “incorporated company” or a “private person” so as to be subjected to criminal culpability under section 97-23-19. Because the State did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Champluvier was guilty of each and every element of the crime of embezzlement as set out in section 97-23-19, the judgment is reversed and rendered. |
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