Shawn Cone v. State of Arkansas, 654 S.W.3d 648

Background

Victim Alissa Reynolds was found decomposing in her Jonesboro home on Dec. 8, 2019; autopsy showed 18 stab wounds and defensive wounds; Cone’s DNA found under her fingernails.
Surveillance and witness testimony placed Shawn Cone at the residence the evening of Dec. 2 (time consistent with death) and seen using Reynolds’s Range Rover, credit cards, and phone after her death.
Cone traveled to Key West and was arrested Dec. 9, 2019; police seized a backpack containing a printed list titled “Countries with no extradition treaty with US” and other items.
Cone admitted using Reynolds’s phone and cards after her death and gave varying accounts (claimed he found her injured and concealed the body).
Cone was convicted by a jury of capital murder, abuse of a corpse, and theft (three felonies and two misdemeanors); he appealed only the felony convictions.

Issues

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (State)	Defendant's Argument (Cone)	Held
Admission of list of non‑extradition countries found in backpack	List was probative of flight and consciousness of guilt when tied to witness testimony about Cone’s statements and searches	List irrelevant and unduly prejudicial; no evidence Cone intended to go to Cuba; speculative	Not preserved for review (conditional admission; Cone failed to contemporaneously object).
Suppression of backpack contents / warrant particularity & probable cause	Warrant described backpack with particularity and investigative facts showed fair probability evidence (blood, stolen cards) would be found	Affidavit lacked probable cause; warrant was overbroad/general; reliance on parole search waiver improper	Warrant was supported by probable cause and sufficiently particular; suppression denial affirmed; waiver argument unnecessary to decide.
Admission of autopsy photographs	Photos assisted medical‑examiner testimony about cause of death, defensive wounds, and decomposition (relevant to abuse‑of‑corpse)	Photos gruesome, cumulative, and unfairly prejudicial under Ark. R. Evid. 403; analogous to Berry	Circuit court did not abuse discretion—photos were tied to testimony, probative for both cause of death and abuse‑of‑corpse.
Denial of directed‑verdict (sufficiency for capital murder, abuse of corpse, credit‑card theft)	Circumstantial evidence (presence at scene, DNA under nails, fatal wounds, post‑death use of property, flight/consciousness of guilt) supports identity and premeditation	Evidence was circumstantial and speculative; other vehicles observed; no direct proof Cone stabbed victim or premeditated	Evidence viewed in State’s favor was substantial; jury could infer identity and premeditation; directed‑verdict denial affirmed.

Key Cases Cited

Holly v. State, 520 S.W.3d 677 (Ark. 2017) (standard for reviewing directed‑verdict motions and sufficiency of evidence)
Kellensworth v. State, 614 S.W.3d 804 (Ark. 2021) (circumstantial‑evidence sufficiency principles)
Keesee v. State, 641 S.W.3d 628 (Ark. 2022) (jury may infer premeditation from circumstantial evidence)
Brooks v. State, 498 S.W.3d 292 (Ark. 2016) (definition of premeditated and deliberated murder)
Fudge v. State, 20 S.W.3d 315 (Ark. 2000) (number and nature of wounds as evidence of premeditation)
Ward v. State, 260 S.W.3d 292 (Ark. 2007) (preservation rule for conditional evidentiary rulings)
Byrum v. State, 884 S.W.2d 248 (Ark. 1994) (contemporaneous‑objection requirement for preserved review)
Alexander v. State, 983 S.W.2d 110 (Ark. 1998) (same preservation principle)
Watson v. State, 724 S.W.2d 478 (Ark. 1987) (practical review standard for warrant particularity)
Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213 (U.S. 1983) (totality‑of‑circumstances standard for probable cause)
Airsman v. State, 451 S.W.3d 565 (Ark. 2014) (admissibility of photographs to explain testimony)
Jones v. State, 984 S.W.2d 432 (Ark. 1999) (gruesome photos admissible if they serve a valid purpose)
Berry v. State, 718 S.W.2d 447 (Ark. 1986) (reversal where autopsy photos were cumulative and prejudicial)