Ferguson v. State, 137 So. 3d 240

Ferguson was convicted of aggravated assault in Mississippi for attacking Katrina Barnes with a knife.
State alleged use of a deadly weapon; Ferguson challenged sufficiency of the evidence.
Ferguson asked for a jury instruction on his competence to testify; the court refused.
Drug paraphernalia found in Barnes’s apartment was excluded at trial.
Ferguson raised ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims in a pro se supplemental brief; relief denied.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Sufficiency of evidence for deadly weapon	Ferguson argues evidence insufficient to prove knife use.	State contends knife and medical testimony suffice.	Evidence sufficient to support conviction without DNA/fingerprint data.
Jury instruction on competency to testify	Ferguson contends D-3 correctly instructed competency.	State argues instruction was improper or unnecessary.	Trial court did not err in denying D-3.
Admission of drug paraphernalia	Ferguson argues pipe is probative and admissible.	State asserts pipe would confuse and be marginally probative.	Court properly excluded pipe; no error.
Ineffective assistance of counsel	Ferguson alleges counsel failed to call witnesses and object effectively.	Issue belongs in post-conviction relief; not on direct appeal.	Denied without prejudice; proceed in post-conviction relief.

Goff v. State, 14 So.3d 625 (Miss. 2009) (lack of DNA/fingerprint not fatal to verdict)
Withers v. State, 907 So.2d 342 (Miss. 2005) (no conclusive physical evidence required)
Baker v. State, 391 So.2d 1010 (Miss. 1980) (competency instruction restrictions on witnesses)
Shields v. State, 751 So.2d 476 (Miss. Ct. App. 1999) (relevance and impeachment of intoxication evidence)
Wetz v. State, 503 So.2d 803 (Miss. 1987) (evidence sufficiency and inferences from gaps)
Archer v. State, 986 So.2d 951 (Miss. 2008) (standard for trial evidentiary rulings)