Porter v. State

869 So. 2d 414, 2004 WL 26606
CourtCourt of Appeals of Mississippi
DecidedJanuary 6, 2004
Docket2002-KA-01817-COA
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 869 So. 2d 414 (Porter 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
Porter v. State, 869 So. 2d 414, 2004 WL 26606 (Mich. Ct. App. 2004).

Opinion

869 So.2d 414 (2004)

Lajuane PORTER, Appellant,
v.
STATE of Mississippi, Appellee.

No. 2002-KA-01817-COA.

Court of Appeals of Mississippi.

January 6, 2004.
Rehearing Denied March 30, 2004.

*416 David G. Hill, Oxford, attorney for appellant.

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

Before McMILLIN, C.J., IRVING and MYERS, JJ.

MYERS, J., for the Court.

¶ 1. Lajuane Porter was found guilty in the Circuit Court of Marshall County of aggravated assault. He was sentenced to serve a term of twenty years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. Aggrieved by his conviction and sentence, Porter appeals and raises the following issues.

ISSUES PRESENTED
I. Did the trial court err by allowing the State to admit evidence of Porter's prior conviction of simple assault?
II. Did the trial court err by allowing the State to use Porter's prior conviction in violation of Uniform Rules of Circuit and County Court Practice 9.04?
III. Did the trial court err by allowing the State to admit evidence of Porter's character as to his temper and his participation in anger management classes?

STATEMENT OF FACTS

¶ 2. It is undisputed that on June 30, 2001, Lajuane Porter shot Kirby Dajuane Cummings as Cummings approached Porter in the driveway at the home of a mutual friend, Kendrick Rankin. Two disputed factual issues arose during Porter's trial. One disputed fact was the previous animosity that existed prior to the shooting between Cummings and Porter. Cummings denied the animosity while Porter testified to several prior threats by Cummings.

¶ 3. The second disputed fact involved Porter's defense. Porter testified that he shot Cummings in self-defense, believing that Cummings was reaching in his pocket to pull out a gun. Cummings testified that he was not carrying a gun at the time of the shooting. Other than the two factual disputes, the remainder of the factual scenario was uncontested.

¶ 4. Cummings stated that he stopped by the home of Kendrick Rankin to get some money that Cummings loaned to Rankin. Cummings testified that he and Rankin were outside the house in the driveway talking to each other when he heard a "gun pop or something." Cummings stated that he turned around and Porter was pointing a gun in the direction of him and Rankin. Cummings stated that Porter told him that he heard Cummings had called him a "player hater." Cummings replied that he had not called Porter a "player hater." Cummings stated that Porter said he did not like Cummings anyway and started shooting.

¶ 5. Relying on the theory of self-defense, Porter testified that he and Cummings were not on good terms at the time of the shooting. Porter stated that the two had never been friends and that Cummings had been threatening him for several *417 months. Porter testified that Cummings once told him at a gas station that he was "going to peel Porter's cap," meaning cause harm to Porter. Porter testified that he was already at Rankin's home sitting in his car listening to music when Cummings arrived. Both Cummings and Porter stated that Porter's car was parked in front of Cummings' truck in the driveway. Porter testified that he had a .45 caliber handgun in his possession while he was at Rankin's house. Porter stated that he carried the gun for protection. Porter stated that he saw Cummings pull into Rankin's driveway and start talking to Rankin. Porter stated that he again heard Cummings say that he was "going to peel Porter's cap." Porter stated that after Rankin and Cummings whispered and laughed awhile, Cummings approached him and motioned like he was pulling something from his waistband. Believing that Cummings was reaching for a weapon, Porter shot Cummings three times and left the scene.

¶ 6. After hearing all the testimony in the case, the jury found Porter guilty of aggravated assault in violation of Mississippi Code Annotated Section 97-3-7(2)(b). Porter was sentenced to serve twenty years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. Porter now appeals his conviction and sentence and seeks reversal from this Court. Porter raises numerous evidentiary issues which this Court consolidates in order to better address each issue.

LEGAL ANALYSIS

I. DID THE TRIAL COURT ERR BY ALLOWING THE STATE TO INTRODUCE EVIDENCE OF PORTER'S PRIOR CONVICTION OF SIMPLE ASSAULT?

¶ 7. Porter raises several issues concerning the admission of his prior criminal conviction for simple assault/domestic violence. Porter asserts that the trial court erred by allowing the State to introduce, over defense counsel's objection, Porter's prior criminal conviction for simple assault/domestic violence for the purpose of impeachment. Porter argues that Rule 609(a)(1)(B) of the Mississippi Rules of Evidence prohibits the introduction of such evidence. Porter also asserts that the trial court abused its discretion by ruling that the probative value of the prior crime substantially outweighed the prejudice to Porter under Rule 403 and therefore permitted the State to introduce the prior crime to impeach Porter.

A. Admission of the Prior Conviction under 609(a)(1)(B)

¶ 8. The admissibility of evidence is within the discretion of the trial court, and absent abuse of that discretion, the trial court's decision on the admissibility of evidence will not be disturbed on appeal. McCoy v. State, 820 So.2d 25, 30 (¶ 15) (Miss.Ct.App.2002). When the trial court stays within the parameters of the Rules of Evidence, the decision to exclude or admit evidence will be afforded a high degree of deference. Id. Also, "the admission or exclusion of evidence must result in prejudice or harm, if a cause is to be reversed on that account." Id.

¶ 9. Porter argues in his appellate brief that Rule 609(a)(1)(B) precludes the State from introducing Porter's prior conviction for the limited purpose of impeachment. Porter asserts that his prior conviction does not meet the threshold requirement of Rule 609(a)(1)(B) which requires that the crime be "punishable by death or imprisonment in excess of one year." M.R.E. 609(a)(1)(A). Porter's prior offense was simple assault, and according to the applicable statute, the punishment was a "fine of not more than five hundred *418 dollars or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than six months, or both." Miss.Code. Ann. § 97-3-7(1)(c) (Rev.2000).

¶ 10. As the State properly indicates, the prior conviction of Porter was admitted before Porter testified. The following colloquy occurred on cross-examination of Officer Novay, a witness for the State, who investigated the shooting:

Defense Counsel: He [Porter] never had any run-ins with the law, has he?
Officer Novay: I did not know him [Porter] prior to that night.
Counsel: He's never been arrested by the Byhalia P.D., has he, that you knew about?
Novay: That I knew about or that I know about?
Counsel: That you knew at that time.
Novay: At that time, no.

¶ 11. The following occurred on re-direct of Officer Novay by the district attorney.

District Attorney: Now, he [defense counsel] asked you about Mr. Porter, any problems he's had with law enforcement. Let me show you this—this Arrest Report which indicates—is this a copy of Lajuane Porter's Arrest Report?

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
869 So. 2d 414, 2004 WL 26606, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/porter-v-state-missctapp-2004.