Nichols v. State, 120 So. 3d 433

Nichols (pro se) appeals circuit court's dismissal of his post-conviction collateral relief (PCR) motion as procedurally barred (successive writ) and time-barred.
Nichols was convicted by guilty plea to two counts of murder (2004) and sentenced to consecutive life terms.
Nichols previously filed a PCR in 2008 (dismissed) and a second PCR in 2011 (dismissed as time-barred and successive).
The Mississippi Uniform Post-Conviction Collateral Relief Act bars successive petitions unless an exception applies; other time-bar rules apply to PCR motions.
The court held Nichols failed to show any exception and that the time-bar applied; the indictment-dismissal issue against Stepp, not Nichols, did not render the sentence illegal.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the PCR motion was procedurally barred as successive writ	Nichols argues exception applies	State contends successive-writ bar applies	Procedurally barred; no applicable exception
Whether the PCR motion was time-barred	Argues constitutional rights waive three-year limit	Time-bar applies under §99-39-5(2)	Time-bar applies; motion untimely
Whether Nichols’ claim of illegal sentence salvages relief	Sentence invalid due to pre-conviction indictment dismissal	Dismissal related to Stepp only; Nichols not affected	Meritless; indictment dismissal did not render Nichols’ sentence illegal

Dobbs v. State, 18 So.3d 295 (Miss. Ct. App. 2009) (burden to show exception to successive-writ bar)
Carbin v. State, 942 So.2d 231 (Miss. Ct. App. 2006) (exception to successive-writ bar requires showing of actual prejudice)
Williams v. State, 872 So.2d 711 (Miss. Ct. App. 2004) (clearly erroneous standard for PCR findings; de novo for law)
Pace v. State, 770 So.2d 1052 (Miss. Ct. App. 2000) (standard of review for legal questions in PCR)
Rowland v. State, 42 So.3d 503 (Miss. 2010) (exceptions to time-bar for fundamental rights)
Nichols v. State, 994 So.2d 236 (Miss. Ct. App. 2008) (cited regarding prior PCR context)