Felton Martin, Jr. v. State of Mississippi, 221 So. 3d 374

In 1997 Felton Martin was convicted of constructive possession of marijuana with intent to distribute; the Mississippi Supreme Court reversed and rendered the conviction in 2001 for insufficient evidence. Martin served five years and eleven days in prison before release.
Mississippi enacted the wrongful-conviction/restitution statute in 2009 allowing compensation when a claimant proves actual innocence by a preponderance of the evidence. Martin filed a restitution claim in 2012.
A one-day bench trial on the restitution claim (Jan. 20, 2015) centered on conflicting testimony about Martin’s presence and conduct in a home where marijuana was being cut and bagged.
Martin and four co-defendant witnesses testified he was at the home briefly, at a refrigerator, had just opened a beer, and did not handle or possess the marijuana; they placed his arrival no later than ~10:30 a.m.
Three police officers testified they executed the warrant around 12:00 p.m.; Detective Nations testified he saw Martin at the kitchen island with an outstretched hand over a bowl of bagged marijuana as if placing or reaching for a package.
The circuit court credited the officers, discredited Martin and his witnesses, and denied restitution for failure to prove actual innocence by a preponderance; the Court of Appeals affirmed.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether Martin proved by a preponderance that he did not commit the felony (actual innocence) and so is entitled to wrongful-conviction restitution	Martin argued he was only briefly in the house, was at the refrigerator with a beer, did not touch or possess marijuana, and witnesses corroborated his account	State relied on officer testimony that Martin was observed at the kitchen island with his hand over a bowl of packaged marijuana and that officers credibly placed arrival at 12:00 p.m., undermining Martin's timeline and innocence claim	Court held Martin failed to prove actual innocence by a preponderance; credited officers’ testimony and affirmed denial of restitution

Martin v. State, 804 So. 2d 967 (Miss. 2001) (appellate reversal and render of Martin’s criminal conviction)
Hymes v. State, 121 So. 3d 938 (Miss. Ct. App. 2013) (elements and awareness required for constructive possession)
Knight v. State, 72 So. 3d 1056 (Miss. 2011) (constructive-possession established by ties to processing activity)
Dixon v. State, 953 So. 2d 1108 (Miss. 2007) (discussing being "in the midst" of items implicating participation)
Hickman v. State ex rel. Miss. Dep’t of Pub. Safety, 592 So. 2d 44 (Miss. 1991) (preponderance standard explained)
City of Jackson v. Lewis, 153 So. 3d 689 (Miss. 2014) (standard of review for bench-trial factual findings)
Matthews v. City of Madison, 143 So. 3d 571 (Miss. 2014) (trial judge’s authority to determine witness credibility)