Hill v. State
| Docket Number | 2022-KA-00524-COA |
| Decision Date | 06 June 2023 |
| Parties | SHAMELL HILL A/K/A SHAMELL ANTWANTE HILL A/K/A SHAMELL A. HILL APPELLANT v. STATE OF MISSISSIPPI APPELLEE |
| Court | Mississippi Court of Appeals |
ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLANT: OFFICE OF STATE PUBLIC DEFENDER BY JUSTIN T. COOK SHAMELL HILL (PRO SE)
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLEE: OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL BY: DANIELLE LOVE BURKS
DISTRICT ATTORNEY: KASSIE ANN COLEMAN
BEFORE BARNES, C.J., McCARTY AND EMFINGER, JJ.
¶1. A man was convicted of capital murder for stabbing his wife after breaking into her home. Finding no error on appeal, we affirm.
¶2. Shamell Hill and Lashawnda Wooten married in 2013. Before marrying Shamell, Lashawnda had three children, and Shamell had at least two children of his own. The two lived together for almost four years until their relationship became tumultuous.
¶3. Shamell alleged he "started getting early signs of her having an affair." He recalled two particular instances in their marriage. First, he stated he received a voicemail from Lashawnda in which he heard her with another man. Second, he recalled going through his wife's phone and finding messages between her and another man. The couple separated, and Lashawnda moved into another home. According to Hill, the couple was separated for "a year and a half." But Shamell did not want the separation from his wife. Shamell called Lashawnda and expressed he loved her and was "ready to come home." But Lashawnda was unyielding. She denied his advances, stating she needed "a little space" and asked for time to herself.
¶4. The next night, Hill said he went to the casino with his friend. He stated after they left, he told his friend, "Take me home, man." Resistant to this idea, his friend replied, "Bro, I'm not taking you home." But Hill steadily insisted that his friend take him to his wife. So, the friend drove him to Lashawnda's home. Once he made it there, Hill went to the door and rang the doorbell. He looked inside the window and noticed that the children were home alone. He then walked away from the front door and saw Lashawnda driving "around the bend" with a man in the car. Hill got into his friend's car, and they followed Lashawnda. She did not drive straight home, though. She instead turned left and "got away."
¶5. Hill then called her and accused her of cheating. He told his wife, She responded, "I told you I wanted a divorce." This angered Shamell. He then told his friend to go back to his wife's house. Once they made it back to her house, he noticed the man was no longer in the car. He then got out of his friend's car and "threw [his] phone at Lashawnda's car." After his wife kept driving, he then "threw a stick" at her car. His wife then got out of her car and told Shamell, "[D]on't put your hands on me." Hill told his wife, "Shawnda, you shouldn't have did me like that." He stated he "grabbed her" and "slammed her on the ground." His wife was later taken to the hospital as a result of the injuries she sustained during the assault.
¶6. The next night, Shamell went to a local club with three of his friends. He stated he felt like "something wasn't right." He looked around and saw Lashawnda's brother walk into the club. He said he knew it was "fixing to go down." Hill, Lashawnda's brother, and one of the brother's friends began fighting. During the fight, Lashawnda's brother allegedly hit Shamell with a pool stick. Then, he claimed his brother-in-law "shot at [him]," hitting him "on [his] right elbow."
¶7. On December 27, 2018, Lashawnda got an emergency protective order against Hill. And on January 7, 2019, Hill was summoned to county court for a hearing on the protective order. After the hearing, a permanent protective order was entered. The order enjoined Hill from "abusing, harassing, stalking, following or threatening" Lashawnda. It further enjoined him from having "any contact with his wife either in person, by phone, electronic communication, or through a third party" except the court. Hill was further enjoined from "going within 100 yards" of his wife. The order was to remain in effect until one year later on January 7, 2020. Both Hill and his wife consented to the order.
¶8. Also at the hearing, Lashawnda stated she would be filing for divorce. A few days later on January 9 and January 10, respectively, Lashawnda and Hill separately met with an attorney and signed a joint complaint for divorce.
¶9. Nine days later, on January 19, 2019, Hill stated his "heart was aching," so he called Lashawnda "several times." He said he "knew the restraining order was on there," but he "wanted to save [his] marriage." He stated that when they finally talked, he asked her if "she care[d] about the dude." She told him that she did. He then asked Lashawnda if she loved him. Hill stated she told him, "Yeah, Shamell, I do." Hill described his wife's response as "the sword that broke the camel's back."
¶10. After hanging up with his wife, Hill made a series of phone calls. First, he called his sister. He stated his sister knew something was wrong, but he told her that "everything [was] fine." Next, he called his sons and talked to them. He also called two of his friends, but neither of them answered. After not getting in contact with his two friends, he talked to his brother and told him that he loved him. Lastly, he talked to his mother. She asked him several times if something was wrong. He told his mother that nothing was wrong with him and said, "I want to be by myself." He stated he told his mother he loved her. Afterward, Hill said he "laid back on [his] bed" and began "crying" and "praying." He stated he began thinking about the "betrayal" and his brother-in-law's "attempt to take [his] life."
¶11. Hill then "got up, went to the kitchen, and . . . got the knife." He then went back into his room and "got a stick." He stated,
¶12. After walking a total of five miles, Hill made it near Lashawnda's house. He saw Lashawnda's cousin "pulling out" of the driveway. After realizing that she recognized him, Hill stated he "just took off running." He then walked to Lashawnda's home. He looked inside the window and saw his wife in the kitchen. He then "busted the window" and went through it. He began charging through the house to the bedroom hoping that another man was there. However, he saw Lashawnda in the bathroom with the phone to her ear. He stated that she "just screamed" and shut the door.
¶13. He then "hit the door with [his] shoulder" and "went in." He told his wife, "I told you you ain't gonna hurt me." He then said, "You played me for the last time." He told his wife He began stabbing her, and she fell back into the bathtub.
¶14. As Hill attacked his wife, her oldest daughter came into the bathroom and screamed, "Daddy, get off my mama." He told her to get her sister and get out of the house. But Lashawnda fought back. She told her daughter to "go grab the mace." Her daughter came back into the bathroom and sprayed the mace, missing Hill's face. Hill continued attacking Lashawnda. He stated he "plunged the knife in her chest" and then stabbed her in the neck. In total, Hill stabbed Lashawnda eighteen times.
¶15. Afterward, Hill got out of the tub and attempted to cut himself. He stated, "I took the knife to my neck two times." He stated he then "took the knife and started hitting [himself] in the stomach." Lashawnda's other daughter then came into the bathroom and asked, "Where mama?" He told her he was sorry and "ran out the back door" and into the woods. After running into the woods, he cut himself again. But this time, Shamell cut himself across his wrists.
¶16. He then ran back across the street near Lashawnda's house. He stated he came out of the woods "with [his] hands up" and told the officer, "I'm the man you looking for." He was arrested and brought in for an interview with the detectives. Hill gave a video confession recalling all the events that took place. In his interview with detectives, he admitted he left his home with the intention of killing his wife.
¶17. Hill was indicted in Lauderdale County for capital murder in the commission of a burglary and charged as a habitual offender.
¶18. At trial, the jury first heard from Lashawnda's father Charles Wooten. He stated he talked to his daughter every night, and the night of the attack was no different. He told the jury that "no more than 20 minutes" into their conversation, he "heard a loud [noise] like an explosion." Her father believed this was the moment Hill "busted into the door." He said he knew Lashawnda was running. Mr. Wooten stated, "She called for me to help her, but I couldn't." He testified he heard Hill say, "I told you I was going to get you." Lashawnda's father stated at that point he was "en route to her destination" and dialed 911.
¶19. Next, Lashawnda's son testified. He stated he and his mother were in the kitchen when they "heard a lot of noise at the door." He said he thought it was a gunshot at first. He testified after hearing it again, Lashawnda "started crying" and "told [him] to run." He told the jury his mother screamed, and she ran into the bathroom. At that point he stated he heard Hill say,
¶20. The jury also heard from Lashawnda's oldest daughter. She told the jury that on the night of the attack, she "heard a loud sound at the back door" of the house. ...
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