Cohen v. State

732 So. 2d 867, 1998 WL 909584
CourtMississippi Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 31, 1998
Docket95-CT-00233-SCT
StatusPublished
Cited by28 cases

This text of 732 So. 2d 867 (Cohen 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
Cohen v. State, 732 So. 2d 867, 1998 WL 909584 (Mich. 1998).

Opinion

732 So.2d 867 (1998)

Keith Dewayne COHEN, a/k/a Kelo
v.
STATE of Mississippi.

No. 95-CT-00233-SCT.

Supreme Court of Mississippi.

December 31, 1998.
Rehearing Denied March 31, 1999.

*868 Darnell Felton, Clarksdale, Attorney for Appellant.

Office of the Attorney General by Charles W. Maris, Jr., Attorney for Appellee.

EN BANC.

ON PETITION FOR WRIT OF CERTIORARI

SMITH, Justice, for the Court:

¶ 1. Cohen was convicted of aggravated assault in the Circuit Court of Coahoma County. The appeal was duly filed and assigned to the Court of Appeals, which reversed the conviction finding that the trial court erred in refusing a requested defense instruction on accidental injury. On Petition for Writ of Certiorari filed by the State, we find the Court of Appeals majority to be in error, and accordingly reverse and reinstate the conviction and sentence of the trial court.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

¶ 2. Cohen was indicted and convicted for the shooting of Ginger Wright. He alleged as his defense that he was defending himself against an alleged attack by a third party, Tyrone Johnson, when he accidentally shot and struck the victim, Wright, an innocent bystander. At trial, he offered the following instruction, D-3, which was denied by the trial court.

The court instructs the jury that the shooting and injuring of another human being shall be excusable when committed by accident and misfortune while necessarily defending oneself. In this case if you shall find from the evidence, or have a reasonable doubt therefrom, that Keith Dewayne Cohen, while necessarily defending himself from any sudden or sufficient provocation by Tyrone "Pooh Pooh" Johnson, fired a pistol and accidentally and/or through misfortune shot Ginger Wright, then it is your sworn duty to find Keith Dewayne Cohen and Martin Washington not guilty.

¶ 3. Cohen contends that this instruction which he had submitted is based upon Dykes v. State, 232 Miss. 379, 99 So.2d 602 (Miss.1957). In that case, the defendant had already been acquitted of the murder of his father-in-law against whom he was allegedly defending himself, and was then tried for the murder of his wife whom he claimed stepped into the line of fire and was accidentally killed.

¶ 4. The Court of Appeals majority found that the failure of the trial court to grant this requested instruction "though it may not be perfectly drawn" was reversible error inasmuch as the jury was not otherwise instructed on accidental injury, and the matter was remanded for new trial. We hold that Court of Appeals dissent was correct in its analysis and finding that the jury was adequately instructed by the other instructions granted by the trial court.

DISCUSSION

¶ 5. Before addressing the merits of the case at hand, the Court will, on its own initiative, address first impression the State's right to file the Petition for Writ of Certiorari. M.R.A.P. 17 is virtually silent on the issue, and therefore the analysis must begin at Miss.Code Ann. (1972) § 99-35-103 which defines the limits of the State's right to appeal. That section provides that

The state or any municipal corporation may prosecute an appeal from a judgment *869 of the circuit court in a criminal cause in the following cases:
(a) From a judgment sustaining a demurrer to, or a motion to quash an indictment, or an affidavit charging crime; but such appeals shall not bar or preclude another prosecution of the defendant for the same offense.
(b) From a judgment actually acquitting the defendant where a question of law has been decided adversely to the state or municipality; but in such case the appeal shall not subject the defendant to further prosecution, nor shall the judgment of acquittal be reversed, but the Supreme Court shall nevertheless decide the question of law presented.
(c) From a ruling adverse to the state or municipality in every case in which the defendant is convicted and prosecutes an appeal; and the case shall be treated as if a cross appeal had been formally presented by the state. All questions of law thus presented shall be decided by the Supreme Court.[1]

Id. Furthermore, Miss.Code Ann. (1972) § 9-4-3(1) and (2) provides;

(1) The Court of Appeals shall have the power to determine or otherwise dispose of any appeal or other proceeding assigned to it by the Supreme Court.
The jurisdiction of the Court of Appeals is limited to those matters which have been assigned to it by the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court shall prescribe rules for the assignment of matters to the Court of Appeals. These rules may provide for the selective assignment of individual cases and may provide for the assignment of cases according to subject matter or other general criteria. However, the Supreme Court shall retain appeals in cases imposing the death penalty, or cases involving utility rates, annexations, bond issues, election contests, or a statute held unconstitutional by the lower court.
(2) Decisions of the Court of Appeals are final and are not subject to review by the Supreme Court, except by writ of certiorari. The Supreme Court may grant certiorari review only by the affirmative vote of four (4) of its members. At any time before final decision by the Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court may, by order, transfer to the Supreme Court any case pending before the Court of Appeals.

Id. [emphasis added].

¶ 6. In this case, the Appellant, Cohen, brought the direct appeal, and his conviction was reversed and remanded. He does not stand acquitted, and more importantly, we find no rule statute, or constitutional provision which would limit the State's right to seek certiorari review of a Court of Appeals decision. M.R.A.P. 17(a) provides that:

A decision of the Court of Appeals is a final decision which is not reviewable by the Supreme Court except on writ of certiorari. Review on writ of certiorari is not a matter of right, but a matter of judicial discretion. The Supreme Court may grant a petition for writ of certiorari on the affirmative vote of four of its members and may, by granting such writ, review any decision of the Court of Appeals. Successive review of a decision of the Court of Appeals by the Supreme Court will ordinarily be granted only for the purpose of resolving substantial questions of law of general significance. [emphasis added].

¶ 7. Furthermore, this review is not available until a M.R.A.P. 40 motion for rehearing has been denied by the Court of Appeals. This Court has never placed any limitation on the State on the filing of *870 these motions either before the Court of Appeals or before this Court. See Shaw v. State, 702 So.2d 386 (Miss.1997) and Ward v. State, 480 So.2d 524 (Miss.1985). Under our rules then, the function of certiorari review is akin to and serves essentially the same purpose as a motion for rehearing where a party believes that the Court of Appeals has made an error in law and/or the application thereof.[2]

¶ 8. The Florida Supreme Court at some point found itself asking the same question now under consideration by members of this Court, and that is, what, if any, limitation is there on the state regarding the filing of Petitions for Writ of Certiorari. In finding that the state had no special limitations upon it, the Florida court said:

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Watts v. Brewer
416 F. App'x 425 (Fifth Circuit, 2011)
Maye v. State
49 So. 3d 1124 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 2010)
Parker v. Crow
2010 Ark. 371 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 2010)
Burks v. State
2009 Ark. 598 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 2009)
Davis v. State
18 So. 3d 842 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 2009)
Steadman Davis v. State of Mississippi
Mississippi Supreme Court, 2008
Foster v. Hill
275 S.W.3d 151 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 2008)
Cory Jermine Maye v. State of Mississippi
Mississippi Supreme Court, 2007
Candice Young v. Donald C. Guild
Mississippi Supreme Court, 2004
Friley v. State
879 So. 2d 1031 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 2004)
Sharkey v. State
856 So. 2d 545 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2003)
Montana v. State
822 So. 2d 954 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 2002)
Randolph v. State
852 So. 2d 547 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 2002)
Williams v. State
803 So. 2d 1159 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 2001)
Dorrough v. State
812 So. 2d 1077 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2001)
Wilson v. State
797 So. 2d 277 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2001)
Peet v. State
811 So. 2d 380 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2001)
Wooten v. State
811 So. 2d 355 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2001)
Chatman v. State
761 So. 2d 851 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 2000)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
732 So. 2d 867, 1998 WL 909584, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cohen-v-state-miss-1998.