Blunt v. State
55 So. 3d 207
Miss. Ct. App.2011Background
- Blunt was indicted in 1996 for murder of Michael Taylor in Lowndes County; trial resulted in a murder conviction and life sentence.
- Appellate and post-conviction history: direct appeal affirmed; new counsel filed post-conviction relief in 2002 asserting ineffective assistance.
- Circuit court held evidentiary hearings in 2008 and 2009; State presented Dr. Steven Hayne as an expert; Blunt called his trial attorney and an expert witness.
- Trial counsel Burdine requested a self-defense jury instruction (D-1) later deemed improper; Flowers/Johnson line of cases condemning similar instructions were cited.
- Circuit court denied relief in 2009; Blunt appealed; court reversed and remanded for a new trial based on ineffective assistance and plain-error in the self-defense instruction.
- Costs of the appeal were assessed to Lowndes County.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ineffective assistance due to improper self-defense instruction | Blunt argues Burdine failed to object to faulty self-defense instruction | Burdine's performance should be given deference as strategic | Burdine's instruction was defective; failure prejudiced Blunt; reverse and remand for new trial |
Key Cases Cited
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (U.S. 1984) (standard for evaluating ineffective assistance of counsel)
- Flowers v. State, 473 So.2d 164 (Miss. 1985) (condemned similar self-defense instructions as reversible error)
- Johnson v. State, 908 So.2d 758 (Miss. 2005) (self-defense instruction flaws prejudicial; reversible error)
- Shaffer v. State, 740 So.2d 273 (Miss. 1998) (due-process rights implicated by improper jury instructions)
- Grubb v. State, 584 So.2d 786 (Miss. 1991) (due-process considerations in jury instruction issues)