Dison v. State
| Docket Number: | 2010-KP-00183-COA Linked Case(s): 2010-CT-00183-SCT |
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| Court of Appeals: |
Opinion Link Opinion Date: 05-17-2011 Opinion Author: Roberts, J. Holding: Affirmed. |
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| Additional Case Information: |
Topic: Burglary - Evidence of flight - M.R.E. 403 - Sufficiency of evidence Judge(s) Concurring: Lee, C.J., Irving and Griffis, P.JJ., Myers, Barnes, Ishee, Carlton and Maxwell, JJ. Procedural History: Jury Trial Nature of the Case: CRIMINAL - FELONY |
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| Trial Court: |
Date of Trial Judgment: 11-04-2009 Appealed from: Oktibbeha County Circuit Court Judge: James T. Kitchens, Jr. Disposition: Convicted of Burglary and Sentenced as a Habitual Offender to Twenty-Five Years in the Custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections and to Pay a $10,000 Fine and $150 in Restitution District Attorney: Forrest Allgood Case Number: 2008-0329-CR |
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| Party Name: | Attorney Name: | |||
| Appellant: | Steven Eric Dison |
PRO SE |
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| Appellee: | State of Mississippi | OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL: STEPHANIE BRELAND WOOD |
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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: | Burglary - Evidence of flight - M.R.E. 403 - Sufficiency of evidence |
| Summary of the Facts: | Steven Dison was convicted of burglary and sentenced as a habitual offender. He appeals. |
| Summary of Opinion Analysis: | Issue 1: Evidence of flight Dison argues that the circuit court erred by not excluding evidence that he had jumped bond after being arrested for the burglary, contending that the evidence was irrelevant and prejudicial. Evidence of flight is admissible to show consciousness of guilt. In cases where a defendant’s flight can be explained by some reason besides his desire to escape punishment for the crime charged, such as being an escaped prisoner being tried on a charge unrelated to escape, then evidence of flight should not be admitted. In this case, Dison offered no rational explanation for his flight and use of assumed names. Therefore, evidence of his flight was admissible to show consciousness of guilt. Although Dison argues that the circuit court erred in not conducting a balancing test under M.R.E. 403, his attorney failed to make any such objection at trial. An appellate court will not normally reverse a circuit court’s decision unless the circuit court was first presented with the issue. Even if the issue had not been waived, the circuit court could not be found to have abused its discretion by admitting the testimony going to Dison’s out-of-state flight. Issue 2: Sufficiency of evidence Dison argues that the circumstantial evidence in this case is insufficient. It is fundamental that convictions of crime cannot be sustained on proof which amounts to no more than a possibility or even when it amounts to a probability, but it must rise to the height which will exclude every reasonable doubt; that when in any essential respect the state relies on circumstantial evidence, it must be such as to exclude every other reasonable hypothesis than that the contention of the state is true. In this case, there was no direct evidence of Dison being the person who stole Mallette’s property. Nonetheless, the record shows that the jury was given a circumstantial-evidence instruction. Dison’s theory of the unidentified third man was presented to the jury, and the jury rejected it. The record does not show any error at trial or any indication of unfair prejudice toward Dison. |
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