Sanders v. State

260 So. 2d 466
Mississippi Supreme Court·Decided April 10, 1972·No. 46773·Published·Cited by 13 cases

Opinion

260 So.2d 466 (1972)

Donald Lamar SANDERS
v.
STATE of Mississippi.

No. 46773.

Supreme Court of Mississippi.

April 10, 1972.

*467 Roland C. Lewis, Jackson, W.M. Conerly, Vicksburg, for appellant.

A.F. Summer, Atty. Gen. by John M. Kinard, Sp. Asst. Atty. Gen., Jackson, for appellee.

ROBERTSON, Justice:

Donald Lamar Sanders was indicted, tried and convicted in the Circuit Court of Warren County of murdering Billy Ray Whitehead, and sentenced to life imprisonment in the State Penitentiary.

On December 31, 1970, Sanders, who was 24 years of age, and his 20-year old friend, Alvin Breland, were celebrating New Year's Eve and were making the rounds of the night clubs and drinking establishments in Vicksburg. Sanders and Breland arrived at Sportsman's Inn about 12:30 A.M., and Sanders admitted that he drank at least 6 or 7 beers while there. When the Inn closed about 3:30 A.M., appellant, with J.B. Sanders, his wife, his sister-in-law and Breland, left in appellant's car.

A short distance from the Inn, appellant stopped his car and offered a ride to Bonita Whitehead and Charlotte Delamar, whose husbands had left them at Sportman's Inn, and who were walking along the road at that time. The two girls refused the ride and appellant and his friends, after going by the Beechwood and finding it closed, went to Jo-Anna's Cafe. A few minutes later Bonita Whitehead and Charlotte Delamar came in with Billy Rich, a Coast Guardsman. Sanders testified that he called Rich outside the cafe and told him that the two women were married, and that Billy Ray Whitehead, Bonita's husband, "can get pretty upset sometimes," and that "It's best you just leave."

J.B. Sanders and Billy Rich testified that appellant actually threatened Rich and brandished a pocketknife. Shortly thereafter appellant took J.B. Sanders, his wife, and sister-in-law, and Breland, to J.B. Sanders' home. There appellant had a drink of vodka, was asked to leave by J.B. Sanders, did leave and without any reason tried to start a fight with Breland outside of the J.B. Sanders home. Mrs. Sanders called to appellant and Breland from an upstairs window and told them that if they didn't leave she would call the police. Appellant and Breland came back to Jo-Anna's Cafe in appellant's car.

In the meantime, Billy Ray Whitehead had come to Jo-Anna's Cafe to take his wife home. He came out of the Cafe and after talking with appellant for a few minutes appellant got into a fight with Whitehead. Breland testified that Whitehead was getting the best of Donnie and he pulled Whitehead off of Donnie. Whitehead went back inside the Cafe and sat in a booth next to his wife, which booth was next to a plate glass window on the front of the Cafe. Gary and Charlotte Delamar were sitting across the table in the same booth with the Whiteheads and all ordered breakfast.

Breland related what then took place:

"A. Yes, sir. So we got in the car. And we sat there for about a minute and Donnie said — he said, `Alvin, he hurt me.' I didn't say nothing. `I'm going to kill him.'"
......
"Q. He was going to kill who?
"A. The Whitehead boy, cause he hurt him. Well, we went on down the *468 road about a hundred and fifty feet and he said it again. He said, `Alvin, he hurt me. I'm going to kill him.' I turned and said, `Donnie, ain't no need in killing a fellow because he's just a better man than you are. He whipped you. Leave it like that and go on.' So we got on down the road there. He stopped at the Pittman's Store down there."

Sanders instructed Breland to get the deer rifle out of the trunk of the car. Breland did so, and Sanders put one round in the chamber and Breland put 5 or 6 rounds in the magazine. Sanders then turned the car around and drove past Jo-Anna's Cafe. He drove about 200 yards past the Cafe, made a "U" turn and headed back north.

According to Breland, Sanders drove very slowly past Jo-Anna's Cafe, stuck the deer rifle out the window on Breland's side and fired one shot through the plate glass window of the Cafe, which was about 20 feet away. The shot went through the plate glass window, a partially opened inside curtain, went through Billy Ray Whitehead's head and broke a pie display case on the counter.

Charlotte Delamar testified that she felt ill, stepped outside the cafe, heard the shot, turned and saw Sanders, the appellant, quickly drive away in his car. She was positive that she saw only one person in the car and that person was Sanders.

Breland testified that he had slumped down on the front seat almost to the floorboard, that he was afraid of what Sanders might do and was getting out of the way of the gun.

Sanders drove to his married sister's home and went to bed. Breland remained up and greeted deputy sheriff Ed Reed when he came to pick them up about 6:30 A.M.

Reed testified that when he went to the Whatley home to pick up Sanders and Breland that:

"[W]hen I said what had happened, the Breland boy spoke up and said `I tried to get him not to do it.' That's the statement that the Breland boy made in my presence.
"Q. Said what?
"A. Said, `I tried to get Donnie not to do it.' That's the words that he said."

In his assignment of errors, appellant contends that his constitutional rights were violated when the state's attorney cross-examined him about his silence and failure to testify at the preliminary hearing. At the preliminary hearing Breland testified that Sanders fired the fatal shot. Sanders admitted that he remained silent at the preliminary hearing on the advice of his attorney. It was not necessary for the county attorney to cross-examine the appellant on his failure to testify at the preliminary hearing, and we do not condone that procedure. However, defense counsel did not object, and thus appellant waived his right to raise this point for the first time on appeal.

In May v. State, 211 So.2d 845 (Miss. 1968), there was a similar assignment of error which we discussed and ruled on, as follows:

"The first assignment is that the court erred in allowing the state to prove and argue that appellant maintained his silence after the shooting and gave no explanation thereof in spite of the fact that his defense at the trial was that the shooting was an accident. The state did prove by some of the officers that when the appellant was arrested and in their custody he made no statement as to how the shooting occurred and consequently did not claim at that time that it was an accident.
......
"However, appellant took the stand to testify in his own behalf. Of course, he did not have to testify. It is generally held, and has been specifically held by *469 this Court, that when the defendant voluntarily takes the witness stand, he waives all right to remain silent and is required to answer any questions relevant to the issue involved. In Autry v. State, 230 Miss. 421, 92 So.2d 856 (1957), this Court recognized, approved, and cited the rule as stated in 58 Am. Jur. Witnesses section 96 at P. 80. It was held that the waiver for the accused when he takes the stand is not partial, and, having once cast aside the cloak of immunity, he may not resume it at will whenever cross-examination may be inconvenient or embarrassing." (Emphasis added). 211 So.2d at 846.

Since appellant voluntarily took the stand and testified in his own defense, he waived hi

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