Davis v. State

• Court: Mississippi Supreme Court
• Writing for the Court: Carlson
• Citation: Davis v. State, 18 So. 3d 842 (Miss. 2009)
• Decision Date: 08 October 2009
• Docket Number: No. 2008-KA-00845-SCT.,2008-KA-00845-SCT.
• Parties: Steadman DAVIS a/k/a Steadman Allen Davis v. STATE of Mississippi.

18 So.3d 842

Steadman DAVIS a/k/a Steadman Allen Davis v. STATE of Mississippi.

No. 2008-KA-00845-SCT.

Supreme Court of Mississippi.

October 8, 2009.

Mississippi Office of Indigent Appeals by: George T. Holmes, attorney for appellant.

Office of the Attorney General by: John R. Henry, Jr., attorney for appellee.

Before CARLSON, P.J., DICKINSON and PIERCE, JJ.

CARLSON, Presiding Justice, for the Court.

¶ 1. Steadman Davis was convicted by a jury of motor-vehicle theft¹ and felony possession of a firearm² in the Circuit Court of the First Judicial District of Hinds County. Davis was sentenced to consecutive sentences of five years for the motor-vehicle-theft conviction and three years for the firearm-possession conviction. In today's appeal, Davis asserts that he was denied crucial jury instructions and that the convictions should be reversed based on the lack of evidence supporting the jury verdicts of guilty. Finding error as to the motor-vehicle-theft conviction, we affirm in part and reverse in part, and remand for a new trial on the charge of motor-vehicle theft.

FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS IN THE TRIAL COURT

¶ 2. On May 21, 2006, the Jackson Police Department received a domestic-disturbance call and was dispatched to 233 Redwood Avenue to a house owned by Laquita Simpson. Upon arrival, the responding officer learned that gunfire had been exchanged between Deborah Wright (Simpson's mother) and Wright's ex-boyfriend, Steadman Davis.

¶ 3. Wright and Davis had dated and lived together at Wright's home (214 Queen Anne Lane) for several months prior to the events which generated today's appeal. Earlier in May, an incident had been reported in which there had been a physical fight between Wright and Davis, which resulted in Wright moving out of her home to live with her daughter, Laquita Simpson, leaving Davis in Wright's home. Davis claimed that, although he continued to live at the Queen Anne Lane house, he was in the process of moving out. Davis alleged that, after the earlier fight between Wright and Davis, Wright's relatives began to threaten him. On the other hand, Wright alleged that after she moved out, Davis began to make harassing telephone calls to her and threatened to harm her and/or members of her family. Wright further asserted that Davis drove past her daughter's house at least twice daily while she was staying there.

¶ 4. Not surprisingly, the events of May 21, 2006, are hotly disputed. Davis claimed that he was tricked into going to Simpson's house and, once there, was ambushed. Wright, however, claimed that Davis threatened her and kidnapped her brother, Cornelius Wells, eventually bringing her brother to Simpson's house where a shoot-out occurred.

¶ 5. Davis alleged that he was at the Queen Anne Lane house, gathering some of his clothing, when Wells arrived at the house. According to Davis, when Wells arrived, Davis was on his cell phone talking with Irene Shepard, a Hinds County deputy sheriff whose car Davis had borrowed to go to the house and get his belongings. Davis stated that, due to the fact that he was being harassed by Wright's family, he was scared that Wells might harm him, so he asked Deputy Shepard to remain on the other end of the call.³

¶ 6. According to Davis, Wells told him that he wanted the dispute between Davis and Wright's family to be resolved and asked him to get in Wells's vehicle with him, so they could drive to Simpson's house and get everything cleared up. According to Davis, Wells then drove Davis to Simpson's house. Davis claimed that just before they arrived at Simpson's house, Wells told him that he (Davis) might get hurt because of what was going on and that nothing would happen to anyone who hurt him. Davis also claimed that, at this point, he realized he was in trouble.

¶ 7. Davis stated he was about to jump out of the vehicle, but they had already arrived at Simpson's house. He claimed that when they arrived, Wells jumped out of the vehicle and ran to hide behind a tree while shouting "Shoot him!" Deputy Shepard, whose call was still connected on Davis's cell phone, claimed that she heard someone yell "Kill him," and then what sounded like firecrackers, though she suspected it was gunfire. Davis claimed that after Wells jumped out of the vehicle, Wright appeared on the porch. Davis stated he was out of the vehicle and beginning to run when Wright fired a gun, shooting him in the left buttock. Davis then fired three shots toward the house, allegedly for "cover" so that he could run around to the driver's side of Wells's vehicle. Davis then got into Wells's vehicle and drove off, claiming that he had no choice; he could either take Wells's vehicle and leave or stay and get shot. Since he was not familiar with the neighborhood, Davis accidentally drove to a dead-end street. He stopped there and put some tissue in his wound, then used Wells's cell phone to call Deputy Shepard. He told her what had happened but asked her not to call the police.

¶ 8. In order to get out of the neighborhood, Davis got back into the vehicle and drove back the way he had previously driven. He claimed that as he drove past Simpson's house, he saw people running, but he did not see a police car. Davis did not stop, but continued to drive with the intention of going to his cousin's house to be taken to the hospital. However, between fleeing the scene and going to his cousin's house, Davis stopped by Deputy Shepard's house to return the key to her car. Deputy Shepard stated Davis told her that he had been shot and that he had to go. Davis claimed that he was on his way to his cousin's house when he was apprehended by police.

¶ 9. According to Wright, on May 21, 2006, her brother, Cornelius Wells, called to ask if he could put some fish in her freezer. She told him she did not care, so he went to her house on Queen Anne Lane. About thirty minutes later, Wells called to say he had been kidnapped by Davis. According to Wells, when he arrived at the house on Queen Anne Lane, Davis was sitting on the couch in his boxer shorts. Wells claimed that as he attempted to leave, he passed by Davis again and Davis was putting on his clothes. Wells said that, at this point, Davis pulled a gun on him and told him that if he did not take him to Wright he would kill him. Wells then used his cell phone to call Wright to tell her that Davis had him, and that Davis was demanding that she meet him on Flag Chapel Road. Wells said that if she refused, Davis was going to kill him. Wright hung up the phone. Wells claimed that Davis then held the gun to his head and forced him to drive to where Wright was— Simpson's house on Redwood Avenue. Davis then allegedly forced Wells to call Wright again and inform her that if she called the police, he would kill Wells. Wright hung up again and called 911.

¶ 10. Wright claimed that she and her daughter and grandchildren were in the front bedroom, waiting for the police to arrive, when she looked out the bedroom window and observed Wells's truck pull into the driveway, with Wells in the driver's seat and Davis in the passenger seat. She further observed Wells jumping out of the truck and running for cover, yelling "Call the police!" Wright claimed that Davis then got out of the truck and came up on the porch of the house while firing into the house. Wright stated that Simpson and her children ran to another part of the house for safety, while Wright took cover behind a dresser in the front room. She claimed that Davis came into the house and fired a number of shots⁴ at her inside the bedroom. Wright then drew her own gun, which she had received from her daughter while she was talking to the 911 operator, and fired at Davis, shooting him in the buttock. Wright stated that her gun jammed and she was not able to shoot Davis again. Wright claimed that at this point Davis ran out of the house, jumped into Wells's truck, and drove off, moments before the police arrived.

¶ 11. Carolyn Kirkland was the responding officer, and she testified that when she arrived, she noticed a bullet hole in the front door and Davis driving past the house. Kirkland had been informed that Davis was armed, so she and the other officers ducked and ran for cover when he drove by. Wright informed Officer Kirkland that Davis had been there moments before and had "shot up in the house." Kirkland testified that she noticed a number⁵ of bullet holes in the door and walls of the house.

¶ 12. Vladimir Hill, the officer who arrested Davis, testified that he did not find a weapon in the vehicle or on Davis's person, and that Davis had been shot in the buttock. Davis was indicted for kidnapping, shooting into an occupied dwelling, motor-vehicle theft, and being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. At trial, after hearing testimony from witnesses for the State and the defendant, the jury found Davis not guilty of kidnapping and not guilty of shooting into an occupied dwelling; however, the jury found Davis guilty of motor-vehicle theft and of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. Davis now appeals to this Court from these two convictions.

DISCUSSION

¶ 13. Davis asserts that the trial court erroneously denied him crucial jury instructions and that the evidence did not support the guilty verdicts.

I. WHETHER DAVIS WAS DENIED CRUCIAL JURY INSTRUCTIONS.

¶ 14. The standard of review when appellate courts consider issues involving jury instructions is well-established. Jury instructions must be read as a whole to determine if the instructions were proper. Milano v. State, 790 So.2d 179, 184 (Miss.2001). Jury instructions must fairly announce the law of the case and not create an injustice against the defendant. Id. This rule is summed up as follows: "In other words, if all instructions taken as a whole fairly, but not necessarily perfectly, announce the applicable rules of law, no error results." Id. See Adams v. State, 772 So.2d 1010, 1016 (Miss.2000).

¶ 15. A defendant has a...