Jackson v. State
| Docket Number: | 2009-KA-00550-COA Linked Case(s): 2009-KA-00550-COA ; 2009-CT-00550-SCT |
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| Court of Appeals: |
Opinion Link Opinion Date: 03-01-2011 Opinion Author: Carlton, J. Holding: Affirmed. |
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| Additional Case Information: |
Topic: Murder - Sufficiency of evidence - Photographs - M.R.E. 403 Judge(s) Concurring: King, C.J., Lee, P.J., Myers, P.J., Irving, Griffis, Barnes, Ishee, Roberts and Maxwell, JJ. Procedural History: Jury Trial Nature of the Case: CRIMINAL - FELONY |
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| Trial Court: |
Date of Trial Judgment: 03-26-2009 Appealed from: Warren County Circuit Court Judge: HON. ISADORE W. PATRICK JR. Disposition: Convicted of Three Counts of Depraved-Heart Murder and Sentenced to Life in the Custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections on each Count Without the Possibility of Parole with the Sentences to Run Consecutively District Attorney: Richard Early Smith, Jr. Case Number: 08,0337CRP |
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| Party Name: | Attorney Name: | |||
| Appellant: | Eric DeShawn Jackson |
PHILLIP BROADHEAD, JERRY CAMPBELL, LESLIE S. LEE, BRANAN PATRICK SOUTHERLAND |
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| Appellee: | State of Mississippi | OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL: STEPHANIE BRELAND WOOD, SCOTT STUART |
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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: | Murder - Sufficiency of evidence - Photographs - M.R.E. 403 |
| Summary of the Facts: | Eric Jackson was convicted of three counts of depraved-heart murder and was sentenced to three consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole. Jackson appeals. |
| Summary of Opinion Analysis: | Issue 1: Sufficiency of evidence Jackson argues that the State failed to raise any reasonable inferences during the trial to support the jury verdict. Jackson specifically points to inconsistencies between an eyewitness’s statements to the police and his testimony at trial. He also points to the testimony of a witness who failed to come forward to the police after the shooting. Despite Jackson’s arguments attacking the credibility of these witnesses’ testimonies, the Mississippi Supreme Court has held that the jury is the sole judge of the credibility of witnesses, and the jury's decision based on conflicting evidence will not be set aside where there is substantial and believable evidence supporting the verdict. Jackson also argues that the physical and forensic evidence contradicted and discredited eyewitness testimony at trial and that his fingerprints were not found on any of the twenty-six rifle shell casings recovered by the police. However, an officer testified that the instructions on the gunshot-residue kit warn that after four hours, gunshot residue could either deteriorate or no longer be present on living subjects. The officer testified that despite this warning, he proceeded to perform a gunshot-residue test on Jackson approximately twelve hours after the shooting and that Jackson informed him that he had bathed prior to submitting to the gunshot-residue test. The absence of physical evidence does not negate a conviction where there is testimonial evidence. The verdict in this case is supported by the overwhelming weight of the evidence. Issue 2: Photographs Jackson argues that the circuit court violated M.R.E. 403 in admitting three photographs of the victims, because these photographs rose to the level of graphically disturbing and were introduced to inflame the jury. Some probative value is the only requirement needed to buttress a trial judge's decision to allow photographs into evidence. In the present case, the circuit judge reviewed the photographs in his chambers before the trial, and he also conducted a Rule 403 balancing test, wherein he carefully weighed the probative value of the evidence against its potential prejudice to Jackson. The State asserted that the photographs constituted necessary evidence to corroborate the testimony of the witnesses for identification, cause of death, and circumstantial purposes. The State charged Jackson with three counts of depraved-heart murder; thus, the circuit judge concluded that the photographs possessed probative value as to material issues in controversy or an element that the State must prove. There was no abuse of discretion by the circuit judge in determining that the photographs of the victims’ bodies had substantial probative value. The photographs identified the victims, and the photographs showed the bodies as the police found them at the crime scene. The photograph of the third victim, an unborn fetus, was admitted during Dr. Hayne’s testimony to aid in his explanation of how the unborn fetus died. All three photographs also helped corroborate the State's assertion of the manner, time, and cause of death. |
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