Voyles v. State

• Decision Date: 20 September 1978
• Docket Number: No. 50648,50648
• Parties: Jimmy VOYLES v. STATE of Mississippi.
• Court: Mississippi Supreme Court

Page 1236

362 So.2d 1236

Jimmy VOYLES v. STATE of Mississippi.

No. 50648.

Supreme Court of Mississippi.

Sept. 20, 1978.

David R. Sparks, Tupelo, for appellant.

A. F. Summer, Atty. Gen. by Marvin L. White, Jr., Sp. Asst. Atty. Gen., Jackson, for appellee.

En Banc:

BOWLING, Justice, for the Court:

Appellant, Jimmy Voyles, was indicted and tried in the Circuit Court of Lee County for the crime of capital murder of one Bernice Griggs. The trial was bifurcated as to guilt and sentence under the guidelines set out by this Court in Jackson v. State, 337 So.2d 1242 (Miss.1976), as codified by legislative enactments set out in Mississippi Code Annotated sections 99-19-101 and 99-19-103 (1977 Supp.). The guilty phase of the trial resulted in a unanimous jury verdict convicting appellant of capital murder. The sentence phase of the trial was conducted before the same jury which returned a verdict of death. The procedure in this phase of the trial will hereinafter be discussed in more detail.

Under the requirements for appeal and review by this Court of all capital murder convictions, the Court has studied carefully every aspect of the case whether or not such were discussed in the briefs submitted. Bell v. State, 360 So.2d 1206 (Miss.1978); Irving v. State, 361 So.2d 1360 decided August 2, 1978; Washington v. State, 361 So.2d 61 decided July 12, 1978. The first requirement is that the Court make a meticulous examination of the evidence presented to the jury. This has been done and a resume of that evidence follows.

Bernice Griggs disappeared on March 12, 1976. Prior to and at that time she was living with her twenty-year-old daughter, Glenda Phillips, near Amory, Mississippi. Other inhabitants of that place of abode were the daughter's husband and their small child. Mrs. Griggs was forty years old. The testimony of the daughter revealed that appellant, age thirty, and Mrs. Griggs had been dating for approximately two months prior to the time of Mrs. Griggs' disappearance.

Witness Danny Lee Dunaway, a resident of Saltillo, testified that on July 13 or 14, 1976, he and his brother Guy were in a boat going down stream in the creek known as "Bucy Bottom." They were hunting turtles. About a mile down stream from the Bucy Bottom Creek bridge, they saw a log and debris in the water and saw what appeared to be a hand sticking up by the log. This was verified when they reached the scene.

The next witness, Douglas West, a deputy sheriff, testified that he received a call pertaining to the find in the creek. He, the sheriff, and other deputies promptly went to the scene. They saw the hand and on investigation found what appeared to be the remains of a body tangled in the debris in the creek. They secured a wool blanket and placed it down in the water under the body remains, lifted all from the water in the blanket, and laid the entire skeletal remains on the ground near the edge of the creek. Photographs were made at that time, prior to further moving of the remains. Four photographs were introduced in evidence as exhibits before the jury. Witness West pointed out in the photographs the remains of a jacket or blouse that was around the rib cage of the disintegrated body and skeleton. This cloth later was removed and retained for evidence and was introduced into evidence by witness West.

Glenda Phillips, the daughter of Mrs. Griggs, described the meeting of appellant and her mother about two months prior to March 12, 1976. The two people dated during that period of time. She testified that appellant and his nephew, Hoyt Mayo arrived at her home about seven o'clock A.M. on March 12. The mother carried the daughter to her place of work and the next time the daughter saw Mrs. Griggs was that afternoon about five o'clock when she returned home. Shortly thereafter, the appellant, Hoyt Mayo and Mrs. Griggs left the home in Mrs. Griggs' car. This was a brown Malibu vehicle, whereas prior to that date Mrs. Griggs owned a blue Ford vehicle. According to Mrs. Phillips, her mother was going to visit another daughter.

The next time Mrs. Phillips saw or heard from any of the three persons was Sunday, March 14, 1976, when appellant and Hoyt Mayo came to her home. She asked them where her mother was, and was told by appellant that Mrs. Griggs, while at a truck stop, had left for Texas with a man in a truck; and that he (Voyles) had put her clothes and other possessions in the truck before she left. Mrs. Griggs, according to Voyles, had told him he would be hearing from her.

About two weeks later, Voyles came back to Mrs. Phillips' home. He told her that he was keeping Mrs. Griggs' car at her request. He further told the daughter that he had received a letter from her mother and would bring it the next time he came by.

Mrs. Phillips identified the remains of the clothing taken from the body hereinbefore described. Her positive testimony was that this was the remains of a "polka dot" jacket that she actually owned, but it was being worn by her mother on March 12, when she left home with appellant and Mayo.

Mrs. Phillips further testified that the only time she heard her mother and appellant arguing was on the night of March 11. The argument was the result of Mrs. Griggs' refusal to allow appellant to go to his place of abode in her car. Mrs. Griggs was crying while they were in the kitchen, at which time appellant "just drew back his fists, but he never did hit her or nothing." The argument ended when appellant left the Phillips' home walking.

Witness J. C. Holley was employed by Crowder Chevrolet Company in Columbus, Mississippi. He testified that on March 12, 1976, Mrs. Griggs, in the company of two men, came to the place of business and the visit resulted in Mrs. Griggs trading cars. She bought a brown Malibu vehicle and traded in a blue Ford. The vehicle was financed through General Motors Acceptance Corporation. Mr. Holley had no further connection with the car for two or three months after its purchase when he learned that it had been repossessed for nonpayment of the purchase price installments. Holley testified that Mrs. Griggs purchased insurance on the vehicle and listed on the application that the appellant would drive the car approximately twenty-five percent of the time.

Witness Nolan Nanney was in the automobile business in Tupelo, and had been for about sixteen years. He had known appellant for a long time. On June 8, 1976, at an automobile auction in Baldwyn, the witness was there to purchase vehicles when he found that appellant was at the auction offering for sale a 1974 brown Malibu automobile, for which he wanted the sum of $2500. Nanney offered $2300 and the offer was accepted by appellant, who reported to the witness that the car was owned by him. A draft was issued by Nanney with the condition thereon that acceptance would be completed only if proper title papers were attached thereto. He testified that upon presentation of the draft there were no title papers and therefore he did not accept it and consequently rescinded the proposed sale. The witness identified the serial number of the vehicle as the same serial number previously testified to by the witness Holley. Nanney testified that Voyles told him he had secured the car from his brother-in-law in Memphis.

Dr. Edwin Allen Raines, a pathologist, testified about examining the remains of the body found in the creek. He could not give a cause of death because of the extent of deterioration. He testified that several bones were broken and that the remains were of a human, "probably" of the female species.

Witness George Bobo was employed by General Motors Acceptance Corporation and had been acquainted with appellant for several years. He had had a conversation with appellant around the first of June, 1976, after having ascertained that the appellant was with Mrs. Griggs when the vehicle was purchased. Shortly thereafter, the witness contacted appellant at his place of employment, and asked him if he had knowledge of the location of Mrs. Griggs' car. Appellant told him that he knew where Mrs. Griggs was in Texas and that he would get in touch with her about getting the car back to Mississippi. Later, the witness had another conversation with appellant, who agreed to go to Texas and return the car for the sum of $150. Appellant did not indicate to the witness that he already had possession of the car in question.

Witness Hoyt Mayo is the nephew of appellant, and had reached eighteen years of age on February 18, 1976. Mayo testified, in regard to the trip to buy the brown Malibu car on March 12, 1976, that he, the appellant Voyles and Mrs. Griggs' young grandchild accompanied Mrs. Griggs that day. He had only seen Mrs. Griggs a couple of times prior to that day. Continuing, Mayo testified that Mrs. Griggs traded her Ford vehicle for the brown Malibu Classic vehicle and that when they left the dealership, Voyles was driving. Afterwards they all proceeded to the Griggs' home near Amory, and upon arriving, Mrs. Griggs left in the car and was gone about twenty-five or thirty minutes. Appellant and the witness remained at the Phillips' home during that time. Upon Mrs. Griggs' return, she packed some clothes and said she was going to see another daughter who was in a training school in Columbus at that time. With Voyles driving, these three people, Voyles, Mrs. Griggs and Mayo, first went to Amory. There the appellant and Mrs. Griggs went into a store to buy something for the daughter Mrs. Griggs was going to visit. The next stop, according to Mayo, was at a service station to fill the car with gasoline. They then went to Tupelo where they stopped at another service station to check the oil in the car. Mayo testified that he went in the restroom and while he was there appellant came in and said he was going to "Bucy Bottom to whip this woman." Mayo stated he then asked appellant to take him somewhere and let him out. After all had returned to the car, the...