Harrison v. State

800 So. 2d 1134, 2001 WL 1014503
CourtMississippi Supreme Court
DecidedSeptember 6, 2001
Docket1998-CT-01278-SCT
StatusPublished
Cited by51 cases

This text of 800 So. 2d 1134 (Harrison 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
Harrison v. State, 800 So. 2d 1134, 2001 WL 1014503 (Mich. 2001).

Opinion

800 So.2d 1134 (2001)

Billy Daniel HARRISON, Jr.
v.
STATE of Mississippi.

No. 1998-CT-01278-SCT.

Supreme Court of Mississippi.

September 6, 2001.
Rehearing Denied December 13, 2001.

John H. Ott, Mccomb, Gus Grable Sermos, Summit, for Appellant.

*1135 Office of the Attorney General by W. Glenn Watts, for Appellee.

EN BANC.

ON WRIT OF CERTIORARI

BANKS, Presiding Justice, for the Court:

¶ 1. Billy Daniel Harrison, Jr., was convicted for possession of a controlled substance. An equally divided Court of Appeals upheld the conviction finding that the trial court did not err in (1) finding probable cause for the stop of Harrison's vehicle, (2) admitting evidence that marijuana was found in his vehicle, (3) admitting evidence of a prior drug transaction, (4) admission of hearsay evidence, and (5) admitting opinion testimony. Harrison v. State, No.1998-KA-01278-COA (Miss.Ct.App. 2000). We granted certiorari solely to confront a matter of statutory interpretation of first impression, that is, whether the specific provisions of Miss.Code Ann. § 63-3-516 (Supp.2000) control over the more general speeding statutes. We conclude that the specific provision of § 63-3-516 prevails over the general speeding statutes. We hold, however, that because the deputies had a reasonable basis for their belief that Harrison committed a moving violation by speeding through a construction zone, there was probable cause to stop Harrison. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the Court of Appeals and the judgment of the circuit court.

I.

¶ 2. At 1:30 a.m. on May 31,1998, Lincoln County Sheriff Deputies Chris Picou ("Picou") and Anthony Foster ("Foster") were monitoring traffic on Interstate 55 in Lincoln County, Mississippi. The deputies parked in a construction area watching north-bound traffic and drove a Sheriffs Department K-9 unit vehicle containing a drug-sniffing dog. The construction zone was marked with a 60 mile per hour speed limit, and there were orange barrels closing off one lane of traffic between mile markers 44 and 46.

¶ 3. The deputies stopped Harrison for driving 67-70 miles per hour in a 60 miles per hour construction zone after visually observing that Harrison appeared to be exceeding the 60 mile per hour speed limit. No workers were present in the area where Harrison was stopped.

¶ 4. After requesting Harrison's driver's license and asking a few questions of Harrison, Officer Picou discovered that Harrison rented the vehicle he was driving in Texas and was returning to Alabama after flying to Houston, Texas. After completing a driver's license check, Deputy Foster discovered that, although Harrison's license was valid, he had prior arrests for narcotic trafficking. Suspecting that drugs might be in the car, Deputy Picou asked Harrison to step out of his vehicle and away from the car.

¶ 5. Deputy Picou then asked Harrison whether he had any prior arrests, if he had any illegal substances in the car, and whether he would allow Deputy Foster to search the car. Deputy Picou testified that Harrison assented to the search. Deputy Foster testified that Harrison denied having previous arrests by shaking his head "no." Deputy Picou opened the rear door to the car and smelled the odor of raw marijuana emanating from the vehicle. Deputy Foster obtained Harrison's car keys to open the trunk and found 117 pounds of marijuana in a duffle bag.

¶ 6. In June, 1998, Harrison was indicted in the Circuit Court of Lincoln County for "willfully, unlawfully, feloniously and knowingly having in his possession more than one kilogram of marijuana, a controlled substance, with the unlawful and felonious intent to distribute said marijuana *1136 to some other person or persons unknown on or about May 31, 1998, in violation of Section 41-29-139 Miss.Code Ann. (1972), as amended." Harrison was convicted for possession with intent to distribute more than one kilogram of marijuana. The court sentenced Harrison to thirty (30) years with a $1 million fine. The Court of Appeals, in a 5-5 decision, affirmed Harrison's conviction and sentence. In a dissent joined by King, P.J., Bridges, Irving and Thomas, JJ., then Judge Diaz concluded that the deputies lacked probable cause to stop Harrison for speeding, because he had not violated the applicable speeding statutes. The Court of Appeals denied Harrison's Motion for Rehearing. This court granted his Petition for Writ of Certiorari.

II.

a.

¶ 7. In reviewing questions of law, this Court proceeds de novo. Sykes v. State, 757 So.2d 997, 999 (Miss.2000) (citing Ellis v. Anderson Tully Co., 727 So.2d 716, 718 (Miss.1998); Cummings v. Benderman, 681 So.2d 97, 100 (Miss.1996)).

¶ 8. Miss.Code Ann. § 63-3-516(1) as it existed at all times pertinent to this action states in pertinent part:

(1) It shall be unlawful for any person to operate a motor vehicle within a highway work zone at a speed in excess of the maximum speed limit specifically established for the zone whenever workers are present and whenever the zone is indicated by appropriately placed signs displaying the reduced maximum speed limit ...

(emphasis supplied).

¶ 9. Harrison argues that § 63-3-516 requires that workers are present in order to violate the elements of that statute. He maintains, and the State concedes, that no workers were present at the time he drove through the construction zone. Thus, he contends that he was not in violation of the applicable statute and the deputies lacked probable cause to stop his vehicle for speeding.

¶ 10. In contrast, the Court of Appeals opined, based upon its reading of Miss. Code Ann. §§ 63-3-313, 63-3-133, 65-1-71, and 65-1-8, that the posted sixty mile per hour limit in the construction zone controlled at all times of day, regardless of the presence of workers. Section 63-3-313 provides: "No driver shall disobey the instructions of any official traffic-control device placed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, unless at the time otherwise directed by a police officer." Miss.Code Ann. § 63-3-313 (1996). Section 63-3-133 defines "traffic control device" as "all signs, signals, ... placed or erected ... for the purpose of regulating, warning, or guiding traffic." Miss.Code Ann. § 63-3-133 (1996). Section 65-1-71 authorizes the Director of the Mississippi Department of Transportation to close highways for construction and set up detours when necessary. Miss.Code Ann. § 65-1-71 (1996). Lastly, § 65-1-8 gives the Mississippi Department of Transportation the power "to make and publish rules, and regulations and ordinances for the control of and the policing of the traffic on the state highways ..." the violation of which constitutes a misdemeanor. Miss. Code Ann. § 65-1-8 (Supp.1999).

¶ 11.

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Bluebook (online)
800 So. 2d 1134, 2001 WL 1014503, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/harrison-v-state-miss-2001.