Myers v. State

353 So. 2d 1364
CourtMississippi Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 11, 1978
Docket49848
StatusPublished
Cited by19 cases

This text of 353 So. 2d 1364 (Myers 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
Myers v. State, 353 So. 2d 1364 (Mich. 1978).

Opinion

353 So.2d 1364 (1978)

Marvin MYERS, Jr.
v.
STATE of Mississippi.

No. 49848.

Supreme Court of Mississippi.

January 11, 1978.

Dodson, Kelly & Butts, Robert J. Kelly, Oxford, for appellant.

A.F. Summer, Atty. Gen., by Frankie Walton White, Sp. Asst. Atty. Gen., Jackson, for appellee.

Before SUGG, WALKER and BROOM, JJ.

SUGG, Justice, for the Court:

This is the third appeal by defendant. His first conviction was reversed because a motion by defendant's court-appointed counsel to withdraw was heard out of defendant's presence. Myers v. State, 254 So.2d 891 (Miss. 1971). Defendant's second conviction was reversed because he was effectively denied the right to counsel of his choice and because his motion to instruct the jury to disregard the testimony of a witness was overruled. Myers v. State, 296 So.2d 695 (Miss. 1974).

Defendant assigns as error that he was denied counsel of his choice in his third trial. With this we concur and reverse for a new trial.

*1365 On April 7, 1975, the first day of the third trial, defendant made the following motion before the jury was empanelled:

COUNSEL FOR THE DEFENDANT (Mr. Kelly): Your Honor, on behalf of the Defendant, Marvin Myers, I move the Court to permit John B. Farese, Sr. and any other member of his firm that may be helpful to him to represent the defendant in this charge of murder of Larry Cox, the reasons being that at the first trial Mr. Myers was represented by the Wilroy & Hagan Firm from Hernando. After the conviction by the jury and sentence of the Court, apparently a group of citizens from DeSoto County, Mississippi, hired John B. Farese and his law firm to represent Marvin Myers on appeal to the Mississippi Supreme Court. The Farese firm did represent Mr. Myers on that appeal and were successful in having the sentence and conviction reversed and returned to this court for trial. John B. Farese and his son, as I understand it, both represented Mr. Myers in the Supreme Court at that time. Prior to the second trial, Mr. Myers moved this Court by me to reinstate John B. Farese as his counsel in this case. At that trial the Court permitted John B. Farese to represent Marvin Myers but excluded John Boothe Farese, the son, from representing Marvin Myers, because John Boothe Farese was then the County Prosecuting Attorney for Benton County, which is not a part of the Seventeenth Judicial District.
Mr. Myers was again convicted and sentenced at the second trial, and I represented him on appeal to the Mississippi Supreme Court. The Supreme Court once again reversed the conviction and sentence and remanded the case to this court for another trial. We are now ready to proceed on the third trial of this case. Prior to this trial, the Court through its own inquiry through the office of the District Attorney, Gerald Chatham, and myself inquired of the Farese Law Firm to determine their willingness and ability to represent Marvin Myers in this case. There has also been contact between the Farese Law Firm and Marvin Myers relating to this case.
In support of Mr. Myers' motion, I would submit a letter dated July 10, 1974, from John B. Farese to Marvin Myers, Jr. In that letter Mr. Farese indicates that he would be willing to participate in the trial of this case. Pursuant to the direction of the Court, on November 26, 1974, I wrote to John B. Farese, and I stated to him that I was writing at the Court's direction advising him that I would be appointed to represent Marvin Myers unless an eligible member of his firm announces to the Court that he or she would be Marvin Myers' attorney; that an eligible member of that firm would be anyone other than John B. Farese. I would submit a copy of that letter in support of the motion.
On November 27, 1974, Mr. Farese wrote a letter to the Court stating that he had been contacted by me by telephone and by letter. He claims that because of his trial schedule that it would be impossible for him to try this case without the services of his son, John Booth Farese. He further states, that at the time his firm represented Marvin Myers, John Booth Farese was not the County Prosecuting Attorney of Benton or any other county. John Booth Farese had not been elected to office and he had done a great deal of preparation in the case. Mr. Farese seemed to feel that under the cannons of ethics that John Booth Farese was morally and legally bound to complete his representation of Marvin Myers. I submit a copy of that letter in support of the motion.
On January 7, 1975, I received a letter from Mr. Chatham, the District Attorney, advising me that I was the legal representative of Marvin Myers at this trial; that Mr. Chatham had discussed the matter with the Court and that John Booth Farese is officially barred from participating in the representation of Marvin Myers due to the affirmation of the Supreme Court. I submit that letter as an Exhibit to the Motion.
*1366 Your Honor, those are all the letter documentations that I would submit at this time. In fairness to the State and the Court, I do have a copy of the letter dated December 4, 1974, from the Court to A.F. Summer, Attorney General, which, if the Court wishes, I could include, but I do not have the response of the Attorney General.

Defendant testified in support of his motion that he wanted John B. Farese and his law firm to represent him and that Mr. Farese (Sr.) had agreed to represent him. Various letters were offered as exhibits to the motion. Exhibit I was a letter dated July 10, 1974 signed by John B. Farese directed to defendant in which he stated that he would be happy to have Robert J. Kelly assist in the retrial of the case and that he and Mr. Kelly would visit defendant, who was in the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman, to see about an early setting for retrial. On November 26, 1974, J. Kelly wrote John B. Farese that Kelly would be appointed to represent Myers unless an eligible member of the Farese firm announced to the court in writing that he would represent Myers. He further stated that an eligible member of the firm would be any member of the firm other than John Booth Farese, who was County Prosecuting Attorney of Benton County. In response thereto John B. Farese wrote the following letter dated November 27, 1974 to the circuit judge:

As you probably know, I received a telephone call from Gerald Chatham regarding this case. I also received a letter, dated November 26th, from Robert J. Kelly, a copy of which is enclosed so there will be no question about what he has told me.
Because of the tremendous trial schedule which I have facing me for the next six or eight months, it will be virtually impossible for me to try this case without the services of my son, John Booth Farese. I must respectfully disagree with Your Honor, when you say that any member of my firm, other than my son, John Booth Farese, can participate in this trial. My reason for objecting is as follows:
At the time we represented Marvin Myers, my son, John Booth Farese, was not the county prosecuting attorney of Benton or any other county. He had not been elected to office and he had done a great deal of the preparation in this case. I feel that, under our Canons of Ethics, John Booth Farese is morally and legally bound to complete his representation of Marvin Myers, in spite of the fact that he is now the prosecuting attorney of Benton County.

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Bluebook (online)
353 So. 2d 1364, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/myers-v-state-miss-1978.