Conerly v. State

879 So. 2d 1101, 2004 WL 1729494
CourtCourt of Appeals of Mississippi
DecidedAugust 3, 2004
Docket2002-KP-01297-COA
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 879 So. 2d 1101 (Conerly v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Mississippi primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Conerly v. State, 879 So. 2d 1101, 2004 WL 1729494 (Mich. Ct. App. 2004).

Opinion

879 So.2d 1101 (2004)

Eldawaneli Tarloytauruss CONERLY a/k/a Eldawain Conerly, Appellant,
v.
STATE of Mississippi, Appellee.

No. 2002-KP-01297-COA.

Court of Appeals of Mississippi.

August 3, 2004.

*1103 Eldawaneli T. Conerly, appellant, pro se.

Office of the Attorney General by Jean Smith Vaughan, attorneys for appellee.

EN BANC.

IRVING, J., for the Court.

¶ 1. Eldawaneli T. Conerly was found guilty by a Walthall County jury of two counts of simple assault on a law enforcement officer and one count of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer. He was sentenced to ten years for the simple assault and twenty years for the aggravated assault, for a total of thirty years, all counts to run consecutively.

¶ 2. Aggrieved, Conerly now assigns the following issues as error: (1) the trial court committed reversible error by failing to order sua sponte a competency hearing before allowing him to represent himself, and trial counsel who served as his advisor was ineffective for failing to request such hearing; (2) the trial court erred in overruling his motion in limine to exclude testimony concerning an alleged armed robbery that preceded the chase, and a gun found in his car after the car was impounded; (3) the trial court erred in overruling his objection to the admission of a warrant and a photograph because the State failed to disclose these items during discovery; (4) the trial court committed reversible error by failing to instruct the jury on the elements of aggravated assault and refusing to grant limiting instructions; (5) the prosecution's continuous referral to an alleged prior armed robbery and its instructions to the jury in closing arguments to hold the armed robbery against him violated his right to a fair trial; (6) and the jury's verdict is against the overwhelming weight of evidence. Conerly also contends that the evidence is insufficient as a matter of law to sustain his conviction. Finding no reversible error, we affirm all issues.

FACTS

¶ 3. On June 15, 2001, police officers in Walthall County received a warning to be on the lookout (BOLO) for a man in a white Oldsmobile Cutlass that had been involved in an armed robbery in Washington Parish, Louisiana. Officers Truitt Simmons, Lee Cotton, and Kyle Huhn each heard the BOLO over their radios and began patrolling in different areas. Officer Huhn called in on his radio and stated that he had spotted the car at a McDonald's and that the suspect was inside eating. The officers decided to wait until the suspect left McDonald's before approaching him due to safety concerns for patrons inside the restaurant. When the suspect, who was later identified as Eldawaneli *1104 T. Conerly, came out of the restaurant, and got into his vehicle and began to drive away, Officer Huhn came up behind him and turned on his siren and blue lights. Conerly did not stop. Officer Huhn continued to follow him. Shortly thereafter, Officer Simmons arrived and joined in the chase. Officer Simmons pulled up beside Conerly's car and began to motion for Conerly to pull over. Conerly refused to pull over, and Officer Simmons fell back in behind Conerly. Officers from Pike County were notified that police were in hot pursuit of the suspect and that they were about to enter Pike County. Officer Cotton joined the pursuit at the Pike County line. As Conerly entered Pike County, Officers Cotton, Simmons, and Huhn decided to do a rolling road block[1] to slow Conerly down. Conerly, however, did not stop and drove his car into Officers Simmons's and Huhn's cars.[2] Conerly continued driving and the police officers continued to pursue him while trying to get him to pull over. The chase finally ended in a residential area, and Conerly jumped out of his vehicle and ran into a wooded area. He was not apprehended until almost a year later. Additional facts will be related during the discussion of the issues.

ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF THE ISSUES

(1) Competency Hearing/Ineffective Assistance of Counsel

¶ 4. Conerly first alleges that the trial court failed to order a competency hearing before allowing him to represent himself, and as a result, his waiver of right to counsel was neither voluntary nor intelligent. He further alleges that his attorney was ineffective in failing to request such hearing.

¶ 5. The State submits that Conerly's ineffective assistance of counsel claim is without merit since he waived representation of counsel, and his attorney sat merely in an advisory capacity.

¶ 6. Conerly relies on Howard v. State, 701 So.2d 274 (Miss.1997) in support of his argument that he should have been given a competency hearing before being allowed to represent himself. In Howard, the Mississippi Supreme Court held that "[e]ven where the issue of competency to stand trial has not been raised by defense counsel, the trial judge has an ongoing responsibility to prevent the trial of an accused unable to assist in his own defense." Id. at 280. The defendant in Howard waived his right to counsel and represented himself. He was convicted and sentenced to death. Id. at 275-76. On appeal, the court reversed and remanded the case for a new trial, finding that the defendant was not competent to represent himself and that his waiver of right to counsel was not voluntary. The court noted that a trial judge has an obligation to order a competency hearing whenever a "reasonable question of the defendant's [mental] capacity arises." Id. at 281. The court also stated that the determination of what is reasonable rests largely within the discretion of the trial judge since he sees the evidence first hand, and observes the demeanor and behavior of the defendant. Id.

*1105 ¶ 7. The Howard court set forth a five-part test to determine if a defendant is competent to stand trial. The court held that before a defendant can be said to be capable of an intelligent and knowing waiver of [his] right to counsel, it must be shown that the defendant is able to satisfy the criteria for competency to stand trial, that is, be able to (1) perceive and understand the nature of the proceedings, (2) rationally communicate with his attorney about the case, (3) recall relevant facts, and (4) testify in his own defense if appropriate. Id. at 280. The defendant's ability to satisfy the foregoing criteria must be commensurate with the severity and complexity of the case. Id.

¶ 8. We find that Conerly's reliance on Howard is misplaced. Conerly, unlike the defendant in Howard, did not exhibit behavior which reasonably should have raised a question as to his ability to represent himself, or his competency to stand trial. Further, throughout trial, the defendant in Howard constantly exhibited numerous instances of paranoid behavior such as repeatedly expressing a belief that the allegations against him were the result of a conspiracy, and that his family members were the ones who committed the murder and framed him. The defendant even argued to the jury that one of the jurors may have committed the crime. Additionally, all four attorneys who attempted to represent the defendant suggested to the court that he was not competent to assist in his own defense.

¶ 9. We find nothing in the record to suggest that a competency hearing was warranted in this case, and Conerly failed to provide evidence that would support his assertion that the trial judge should have ordered the hearing sua sponte. Therefore, this issue lacks merit.

¶ 10.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
879 So. 2d 1101, 2004 WL 1729494, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/conerly-v-state-missctapp-2004.