McMillan v. City of Jackson

701 So. 2d 1105, 1997 Miss. LEXIS 530, 1997 WL 660474
CourtMississippi Supreme Court
DecidedOctober 23, 1997
Docket95-CA-01092-SCT
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 701 So. 2d 1105 (McMillan v. City of Jackson) 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
McMillan v. City of Jackson, 701 So. 2d 1105, 1997 Miss. LEXIS 530, 1997 WL 660474 (Mich. 1997).

Opinion

701 So.2d 1105 (1997)

Beverly McMILLAN
v.
CITY OF JACKSON.

No. 95-CA-01092-SCT.

Supreme Court of Mississippi.

October 23, 1997.

*1106 Stephen M. Crampton, Tupelo, for Appellant.

Mark E. McLeod, Jackson, for Appellee.

Before SULLIVAN, P.J., and PITTMAN and BANKS, JJ.

BANKS, Justice, for the Court:

¶ 1. Today, we are asked to determine whether the necessity defense is effective against the charge of trespass on the premises of an abortion clinic where the allegation is that the trespasser claims no knowledge of a specific impending act of legal harm to a person. We answer in the negative. Abortions can be lawful medical procedures, therefore, the requisite legal harm does not exist to justify criminal trespass. Thus, we affirm the decision of the circuit court.

I.

¶ 2. On July 17, 1993, Beverly McMillan participated in an abortion protest at the Mississippi Women's Medical Clinic in Jackson Mississippi. McMillan was charged with trespass on the premises pursuant to Miss. Code Ann. § 97-17-97 (1994). On February 18, 1994, before the County Court of the First Judicial District of Hinds County, counsel representing McMillan stipulated that McMillan's conduct did conform to the elements of trespass, but that her actions were justified under the defense of necessity. Counsel outlined the offer of proof that would be submitted in support of the contention that the appellant's actions were within the necessity defense. The issue of whether McMillan could present the necessity defense was certified by the trial judge to the Supreme Court on interlocutory appeal. On June 9, 1994, the petition for interlocutory appeal was denied.

¶ 3. On February 10, 1995, the parties again appeared before the County Court of Hinds County where the defendant sought to stipulate and clarify that the defendant did have a defense of justification. Judge C.A. Henley indicated that the entire February 18, 1994, transcript which included the defendant's offer of proof was entered in the record. On April 18, 1995, however, a final judgment was rendered which stated that Beverly McMillan was guilty of trespass. A notice of appeal was filed to the Circuit Court of the Seventh District, Hinds County on April 19, 1995.

¶ 4. The circuit court issued an opinion and order on September 21, 1995, affirming the conviction for the criminal offense of trespass. An appeal was filed to this Court on September 26, 1995.

II.

¶ 5. The appellant does not quarrel with the issue of whether the law was violated. According to the record, an affidavit was submitted by the City of Jackson, Mississippi, which charged Beverly McMillan with wilful and unlawful trespass on the property of the Mississippi Women's Medical Clinic. Miss. Code Ann. § 97-17-97 (1994).[1] While she did break the law, the basic thrust of McMillan's argument is that in light of her knowledge, experience and training as an obstetrician/gynecologist, her conduct was justified to prevent the killing of viable preborn children.

¶ 6. In support of McMillan's application of the necessity defense, she indicates that the necessity defense is a widely accepted defense that has found favor in Mississippi jurisprudence. We have applied the defense of necessity to justify the use of deadly force in matters of self defense. Calhoun v. State, 526 So.2d 531 (Miss. 1988) (circuit court *1107 erred because it refused to grant instruction that self defense may be applicable to a third party.) Also, we have acknowledged that the defense of necessity may justify escape from custody. Corley v. State, 536 So.2d 1314 (Miss. 1988) (although the Court affirmed the defendant's conviction, it outlined how the defense of necessity could be applied lawfully). Moreover, the defense of necessity has been used to justify leaving the scene of an accident. Knight v. State, 601 So.2d 403 (Miss. 1992). The application of the necessity defense in these cases share the finding of a reasonable belief that imminent danger of death or serious bodily harm induced the criminal conduct. These cases are distinguishable from the circumstances that led to McMillan's trespass because she had no knowledge that a specific harm was imminent to justify her unlawful action.

¶ 7. The Kansas Supreme Court has noted that courts have invoked several different rationales in rejecting application of the defense in circumstances similar to the present case. "The majority of courts reason that because abortion is a lawful, constitutionally protected act, it is not a legally recognized harm which can justify illegal conduct." City of Wichita v. Tilson, 253 Kan. 285, 855 P.2d 911, 915 (1993). Likewise in Hill v. State, 688 So.2d 901 (Fla. 1996), a defendant was charged with first degree murder after killing an abortion clinic physician and volunteer. The defendant sought to present the necessity defense at trial but the State filed a motion in limine to preclude Hill from presenting the defense. Id. at 902. The court noted that in every appellate court found to have considered the issue, the defendants were precluded as a matter of law from asserting necessity or justification as a defense to trespass violations committed in protest of abortions. Id. at 905-06 & n. 5 (citing numerous cases from other jurisdictions). Accordingly, the court found that "... as a matter of law, legal abortion is not a recognized harm and cannot be used to invoke the necessity defense." Id. at 906.

¶ 8. In Cleveland v. Municipality of Anchorage, 631 P.2d 1073 (Alaska 1981), the defendants were charged with violation of an Anchorage city criminal trespass ordinance after they handcuffed themselves to an abortion clinic and were physically removed from the clinic. The defendants asserted the necessity defense as a justification for their action. The defendants argued before the Alaska Supreme Court that "... in attempting to prevent the performance of abortions at the Alaska Clinic, they acted in the reasonable belief that their actions were necessary to protect human life from imminent peril." Id. at 1077. That court disagreed and affirmed the convictions. The court noted that the defense of necessity has three essential elements: (1) the act charged must have been done to prevent a significant evil; (2) there must have been no adequate alternative; and (3) the harm caused must not have been disproportionate to the harm avoided. Id. at 1078. The court found that the harm sought to be avoided, namely the abortions that the defendants sought to prevent, was not unlawful and thus did not fall within the defense. Id. at 1079.

¶ 9. Utilizing the same basic test, along with the requirement in our case law that the threatened harm be specific and imminent, we conclude that the instant appeal cannot succeed. McMillan argues that her offer of proof would have shown that her trespass on the premises of the abortion clinic was within the reach of the necessity defense because there was imminent danger to human life and no legal alternative existed at the time the criminal statute was violated.

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Bluebook (online)
701 So. 2d 1105, 1997 Miss. LEXIS 530, 1997 WL 660474, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mcmillan-v-city-of-jackson-miss-1997.