Carpenter v. State

910 So. 2d 528, 2005 WL 372609
CourtMississippi Supreme Court
DecidedFebruary 17, 2005
Docket2003-KA-02609-SCT
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 910 So. 2d 528 (Carpenter v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Mississippi Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Carpenter v. State, 910 So. 2d 528, 2005 WL 372609 (Mich. 2005).

Opinion

910 So.2d 528 (2005)

Vernell CARPENTER
v.
STATE of Mississippi.

No. 2003-KA-02609-SCT.

Supreme Court of Mississippi.

February 17, 2005.

*529 James Kevin Rundlett, attorney for appellant.

Office of the Attorney General by Jean Smith Vaughn, attorney for appellee.

Before WALLER, P.J., GRAVES and DICKINSON, JJ.

DICKINSON, Justice, for the Court.

¶ 1. Following a jury trial, Vernell Carpenter was convicted of burglary of a business and sentenced to seven years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. This case involves a prosecutor's use of information at trial that a police officer obtained from Carpenter prior to advising him of his constitutional rights.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

¶ 2. While on patrol, Officer Samuel Haymer heard the sound of breaking glass at Martin's Cleaners & Laundry. After spotting a person running from the building, he drove his patrol car to a vacant parking lot next to the building. Arriving at the back of the parking lot, he saw an individual walking toward him whom he would later identify as Vernell Carpenter.[1]

¶ 3. After handcuffing Carpenter, but before advising him of his Miranda rights,[2] Officer Haymer began questioning Carpenter. During the questioning, Carpenter confessed to the crime and showed Officer Haymer where clothes stolen from Martin's were hidden.

¶ 4. There was another man in the area. Responding to one of Officer Haymer's questions, Carpenter identified him as Clifford Labranche, who was also arrested and charged with business burglary of Martin's.

¶ 5. Carpenter's counsel moved to suppress the confession. The trial court granted the motion. Immediately prior to trial, Carpenter's counsel moved in limine to exclude the confession and any other statements or information obtained from Carpenter by law enforcement prior to advising him of his Miranda rights. The trial court also granted this motion.

¶ 6. At trial, Officer Haymer testified that Carpenter identified Labranche. Carpenter's counsel immediately moved for a mistrial, which was denied.

¶ 7. During closing arguments, the prosecution commented about Carpenter's identification of Labranche to which defense counsel objected, but again was overruled. At the conclusion of the trial, the jury returned a guilty verdict and Carpenter was sentenced to seven years in custody *530 of the Mississippi Department of Corrections.

ANALYSIS

¶ 8. Carpenter raises the following four issues:

(1) Whether the trial court erred by allowing testimony of the arresting officer over objection following the granting of a motion in limine.
(2) Whether the trial court erred by failing to grant Carpenter's motion for a mistrial following the testimony of the arresting officer.
(3) Whether the trial court erred in allowing the prosecutor to refer to the testimony of the arresting officer in his closing statement.
(4) Whether the trial court erred by not granting Carpenter's motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict or, in the alternative, a new trial.

We begin by addressing issues (1) and (2) together.

I. Whether the trial court erred by allowing testimony of the arresting officer over objection following the granting of a motion in limine and by failing to grant a mistrial.

¶ 9. During the suppression hearing, the trial court concluded that Carpenter's constitutional rights were violated when Officer Haymer took him into custody and questioned him before advising him of his Miranda rights. The trial court held:

[T]he Court is going to grant the motion to suppress as far as the suspect admitting that he and his friend, Clifford Labranche, broke into the business, that and anything connected with that. There may be some other parts there too, but as of now that's the only thing that stands out in the opinion of the Court that is not admissible. Of course, the other parts may be, such as this statement, the suspect was apprehended several feet from where he had hidden the stolen property from the business. He can certainly testify as to where he was arrested in connection to where he found some clothes in the area, or something like that.

¶ 10. Thereafter, following jury selection but prior to opening statements, defense counsel raised the following:

BY MR. RUNDLETT: The Court will recall that the defense filed a suppression motion several weeks ago based upon the belief that the defendant was somehow coerced into making statements that the officer says that he made. During the course of that hearing it was determined based on Officer Haymer's testimony that the defendant was placed in handcuffs before any questioning occurred. He also testified that he heard glass breaking and saw someone running in the area before he put my client, Mr. Carpenter, in handcuffs.
* * *
It's our contention that a motion in limine is more appropriate based on the fact that Vernell Carpenter was in custody and was interrogated.
BY THE COURT: All right. So that's what you're specifically asking to be excluded?
BY MR. RUNDLETT: And any statements that the officer claims my client made, such as also he claims that he asked him how did you get here and where is the car, after he was in handcuffs, after he had probable cause after hearing the glass break and seeing him run and—seeing someone run and then seeing my client run.
And I would also ask that the portion of the testimony after Vernell Carpenter *531 was in handcuff and questioned, on page six, he asked Vernell, who is this person that's coming from the car, and anything that was said in response thereto.
On page 11 of the transcript Officer Haymer admitted that Vernell Carpenter was in custody before he questioned him.
* * *
We're asking that the fact that the officer learned this due to a custodial interrogation, whatever was said by my client should be suppressed.
BY THE COURT: All right. Response by the State.
BY MR. JACKSON: Your Honor, our response is that we've already gone over this matter. Basically Mr. Rundlett did you mention anything different than he mentioned during the motion to suppress hearing. It's res judicata.
* * *
As far as the car and all that other stuff is concerned, that deals with the codefendant. These matter have been severed. We have no intention of going into details about him showing where the car was or talking about the other defendant or anything.
* * *
Your Honor, there is no new evidence as the Court asked for. The argument then was Miranda warnings. The argument today is Miranda Warnings. There is nothing new, nothing different. And your Honor, it's our contention that his is res judicata. The Court has ruled on this. And we feel that this matter has been ruled on and it's closed so we should just move forward with the case.
* * *
BY MR. RUNDLETT: Your Honor, I did present the Court with two cases that I did not have at the time of the last hearing, which is Griffin versus State and Hopkins versus State.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
910 So. 2d 528, 2005 WL 372609, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/carpenter-v-state-miss-2005.