281 So.3d 40
Miss. Ct. App.2019Background
- In 1983 Juarez Keyes pled guilty to multiple charges including rape and was sentenced as a habitual offender to 37 years.
- Keyes admitted the factual basis for the rape at the plea hearing (armed, forced victim to remove clothing, penetrated twice).
- Keyes filed a post-conviction collateral-relief (PCCR) motion on April 25, 2016, more than three decades after his 1983 conviction.
- The Hinds County Circuit Court denied the PCCR motion; the court noted Keyes had previously filed multiple PCCR motions that were denied.
- Keyes appealed pro se, arguing: denial of right to confront accuser, absence of DNA evidence, and that the court withheld records (invoking Brady).
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Procedural bars (timeliness/successive writ) | Keyes sought PCCR despite 1983 conviction; argues underlying claims meritorious | State: PCCR filed in 2016 is time-barred and successive; Keyes has prior denials | Motion is time-barred and a successive writ; procedural bar applies |
| Right to confront accuser | Keyes: was denied Confrontation Clause rights | State: constitutional rights waived by valid guilty plea | Waiver applies; guilty plea relieved confrontation claim |
| Lack of DNA/evidentiary insufficiency | Keyes: no rape-kit or DNA was produced linking him to the crime | State: plea transcript contains factual admissions sufficient to support plea; DNA not required | Claim fails; plea admissions supply adequate factual basis |
| Alleged suppression/withholding of records (Brady) | Keyes: court is withholding records; cites Brady violation | State: no showing the prosecution suppressed material favorable evidence | No Brady showing; claim fails for lack of identified suppressed material |
Key Cases Cited
- Wallace v. State, 180 So. 3d 767 (Miss. Ct. App. 2015) (standard of review for PCCR denials)
- Myers v. State, 767 So. 2d 1058 (Miss. Ct. App. 2000) (guilty plea waives certain constitutional rights including confrontation)
- Fountain v. State, 85 So. 3d 913 (Miss. Ct. App. 2012) (DNA evidence supports convictions but is not always necessary)
- Campbell v. State, 233 So. 3d 904 (Miss. Ct. App. 2017) (movant bears burden to prove statutory exception to PCCR time bar)
- Dobbs v. State, 18 So. 3d 295 (Miss. Ct. App. 2009) (burden on movant to show exception to successive-writ bar; time-bar may be waived for fundamental rights)
- Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (U.S. 1963) (suppression by prosecution of material favorable evidence violates due process)
- Keyes v. State, 549 So. 2d 949 (Miss. 1989) (prior PCCR filing)
- Keyes v. State, 918 So. 2d 76 (Miss. Ct. App. 2005) (prior PCCR filing)