Robert Decatur a/k/a Robert James Decatur v. State of Mississippi

CourtCourt of Appeals of Mississippi
DecidedMay 25, 2021
Docket2019-KA-01527-COA
StatusPublished

This text of Robert Decatur a/k/a Robert James Decatur v. State of Mississippi (Robert Decatur a/k/a Robert James Decatur v. State of Mississippi) 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
Robert Decatur a/k/a Robert James Decatur v. State of Mississippi, (Mich. Ct. App. 2021).

Opinion

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI

NO. 2019-KA-01527-COA

ROBERT DECATUR A/K/A ROBERT JAMES APPELLANT DECATUR

v.

STATE OF MISSISSIPPI APPELLEE

DATE OF JUDGMENT: 08/09/2018 TRIAL JUDGE: HON. TOMIE T. GREEN COURT FROM WHICH APPEALED: HINDS COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT, FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT: OFFICE OF STATE PUBLIC DEFENDER BY: HUNTER NOLAN AIKENS ATTORNEY FOR APPELLEE: OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL BY: LAUREN GABRIELLE CANTRELL DISTRICT ATTORNEY: JODY EDWARD OWENS II NATURE OF THE CASE: CRIMINAL - FELONY DISPOSITION: AFFIRMED - 05/25/2021 MOTION FOR REHEARING FILED: MANDATE ISSUED:

BEFORE CARLTON, P.J., LAWRENCE AND SMITH, JJ.

SMITH, J., FOR THE COURT:

¶1. A Hinds County jury convicted Robert Decatur of the second-degree murder of

Dammian Trunnell. The Hinds County Circuit Court sentenced Decatur to thirty years in the

custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC), with ten years to serve,

twenty years suspended, and five years of supervised probation. On appeal, Decatur argues

the circuit court erred by (1) excluding evidence of his peaceful character; (2) excluding

evidence of threats made against him; and (3) failing to instruct the jury on heat-of-passion

manslaughter. Finding no reversible error, we affirm Decatur’s conviction and sentence. FACTS

¶2. Several days prior to Trunnell’s death, Decatur delivered one of two missing dogs to

the home of his brother-in-law Cord Johnson. Decatur testified at trial that he found a female

pit bull running loose and put the dog inside his vehicle. Decatur recognized the pit bull

because the owner, William Butler, was a first cousin to Decatur’s wife Ashley. After

receiving the female pit bull from Decatur, Cord testified that he contacted Butler, who did

not believe Decatur had simply found the dog. Instead, Butler accused Decatur of stealing

both his male and female pit bulls. Cord testified that around 9 p.m. on April 22, 2015,

Butler, Trunnell, and Albert English Jr. came to his home. Cord stated that Butler and

English were his cousins and that they were looking for Butler’s missing male pit bull. Cord

further stated that Trunnell had come to his home “to add evidence that he did see [Decatur]

with the dog.” Cord testified that the three men were upset when they left his home and that

he “felt like they were going to do something to [Decatur].”

¶3. Ashley and her mother Linda Johnson testified that Butler, English, and Trunnell also

came to their home that evening. Although she was unsure of the exact time, Linda testified

that it might have been around 10 p.m. when the three men arrived. Both Ashley and Linda

stated that Butler and English arrived in one vehicle and that Trunnell arrived in a second

vehicle. Ashley testified that Butler, who appeared angry and upset, accused Decatur of

stealing his dog. Linda likewise testified that the three men were upset over Butler’s missing

dog and that they appeared to still be upset after they spoke with her and Ashley. Once the

three men drove away, Linda called Decatur. Linda testified she told Decatur that Butler,

2 English, and “some other guy” she did not know had come to the house and were upset.

Linda stated that she warned Decatur about the three men because she did not want anyone

to hurt him.

¶4. Decatur testified that he was at the gym on April 22, 2015, when Linda called him

between 10 p.m. and 10:45 p.m. As he was speaking to Linda, Decatur received another call

from Butler. Decatur testified that Butler was very hostile and accused him of stealing a

male pit bull. Decatur denied having Butler’s missing dog and asked Butler to stop going

to his home and making threats against him. Decatur stated that after he diffused the tension

with Butler, he and Butler agreed to meet to further discuss the matter.

¶5. No dispute exists that Decatur subsequently drove to encounter Butler and English at

their grandmother’s home. Nor does any dispute exist that during the encounter, Decatur

produced a handgun and fired four or five shots, one of which killed Trunnell. After leaving

the crime scene, Decatur drove home, called police, and surrendered himself to law

enforcement. Following his arrest, Decatur waived his Miranda1 rights and gave a statement

to Detective Jermaine Magee of the Jackson Police Department. Decatur told Detective

Magee about the dispute that had arisen between him and Butler regarding Butler’s missing

dog. After speaking with Butler on the phone, Decatur stated that he had agreed to drive

over to the home of Ashley, Butler, and English’s grandmother to meet with Butler in person.

Decatur stated that Butler and English were standing outside when he pulled up and exited

his vehicle.

1 Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966).

3 ¶6. Although he admitted at trial that he lied about what happened next, Decatur claimed

during his pretrial interview that Trunnell pulled up beside him as he was speaking to Butler

and English. According to Decatur’s first version of his story during his statement to police,

Trunnell began speaking in a hostile manner and waving a black handgun at him. Decatur

told Detective Magee that he decided to leave because he felt as though he had been set up

by the other three men. Decatur stated that as he walked back toward his vehicle, he heard

Trunnell put his vehicle in park and declare that he was going to “blast” Decatur. Decatur

claimed that Trunnell’s actions scared him so he pulled out his own weapon and fired about

three to five shots at Trunnell. Although he did not know where all his bullets went, Decatur

stated that he saw one shatter the rear window of Trunnell’s vehicle and another hit the

vehicle’s tailgate. Decatur told Detective Magee that Trunnell was the only person he had

seen in possession of a gun.

¶7. After interviewing Decatur, Detective Magee reviewed video footage of the shooting.

Detective Magee discovered that the video footage contradicted Decatur’s version of events

in several important respects. The police obtained the video footage from William Melton,

a former deputy with the Hinds County Sheriff’s Department. Melton lived on the street

corner where the shooting had occurred, and his home security cameras had captured the

shooting. While sitting in his home office, Melton received an alert on his computer that

notified him of rapid movement outside his home. Melton’s security cameras showed

Decatur’s white Chevrolet Impala driving quickly along the street. Decatur ran a stop sign

and then parked a few feet behind Trunnell’s already parked silver Ford Expedition. Melton

4 watched on his computer as Decatur exited his Impala and walked toward the front of the

vehicle. As Decatur reached the front of his vehicle, he fired a gun four to five times. The

video showed that only a few seconds had passed between the time Decatur exited his vehicle

and when he fired his gun. Melton testified that he had his office window slightly open and

could hear the gunshots as he watched events unfold on his computer. After firing his gun,

Decatur approached the passenger side of Trunnell’s Expedition and looked into the vehicle.

He then turned his back on the scene, walked back to his own vehicle, and drove away.

¶8. Melton called 911 and went outside to check on everyone. Melton testified that he

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Related

Miranda v. Arizona
384 U.S. 436 (Supreme Court, 1966)
Harris v. State
386 So. 2d 393 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 1980)
Pham v. State
716 So. 2d 1100 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 1998)
Lindsey v. State
990 So. 2d 270 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2008)
Adams v. State
772 So. 2d 1010 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 2000)
Jones v. State
39 So. 3d 860 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 2010)
Jermaine Crump v. State of Mississippi
237 So. 3d 808 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2017)
Lori Griffin v. State of Mississippi
269 So. 3d 337 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2018)
Chaupette v. State
136 So. 3d 1041 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 2014)
Ronk v. State
172 So. 3d 1112 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 2015)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
Robert Decatur a/k/a Robert James Decatur v. State of Mississippi, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/robert-decatur-aka-robert-james-decatur-v-state-of-mississippi-missctapp-2021.