Terrell Patrick Corvette Hopper v. State of Mississippi
220 So. 3d 224
| Miss. Ct. App. | 2017Background
- Terrell P. C. Hopper was indicted in 2003 for multiple offenses arising from August 2002 shootings: aggravated assault (including against a police chief and other officers), armed robbery, and related counts; he was tried in two separate trials and convicted.
- Sentences from the two trials were ordered consecutively and concurrently in part, yielding an aggregate lengthy prison term; post-trial motions for new trial were denied.
- Original direct appeals were dismissed for failure to proceed; the Mississippi Supreme Court later granted out-of-time appeals and consolidated the matters for review by the Court of Appeals.
- Hopper (through appointed counsel) raised a single principal issue: ineffective assistance of counsel (various specific alleged errors). He also filed a pro se supplemental brief raising additional claims (Confrontation Clause/expert testimony, Brady, defective indictments, speedy trial).
- The Court applied Strickland’s two-prong standard for ineffective assistance and reviewed evidentiary, procedural, and constitutional claims on the record before it.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (Hopper) | Defendant's Argument (State) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ineffective assistance — failure to request accident instruction | Counsel should have requested an accident instruction based on Hopper’s testimony that one shooting was accidental | No sufficient evidentiary basis for accident instruction; counsel’s choice reasonable | Denied — no deficient performance or prejudice; instruction unwarranted |
| Ineffective assistance — failure to move to sever joint trial with Parker | Trial should have been severed because Parker’s defense differed and joint trial prejudiced Hopper | Evidence largely overlapped; severance decision was strategic and discretionary | Denied — no Strickland relief; joint trial proper given overlapping evidence |
| Ineffective assistance — failure to object to evidence and publicity; overall competence | Counsel failed to object to cross-references between trials, stipulated to certain firearm facts, and did not move for change of venue despite publicity | These were strategic decisions; references were unavoidable due to nexus of events; change-of-venue decision falls within strategy | Denied — choices presumed strategic; overwhelming evidence forecloses prejudice |
| Confrontation Clause / expert testimony & Brady / indictment & speedy trial (grouped supplemental claims) | (1) Hopper couldn’t cross-examine the technician who recovered a bullet; (2) State withheld exculpatory evidence about gun ownership; (3) indictments defective for not alleging "serious" injury; (4) speedy-trial violation due to pretrial delay | (1) Testifying expert participated sufficiently at scene; no Crawford violation; (2) Ownership testimony was elicited at trial and Brown’s ownership disclosed; (3) Statute covers bodily injury with deadly weapon so indictments adequate; (4) Delay existed but Hopper waived by not raising at trial; may raise ineffective-assistance claim later | Denied on merits for (1)–(3); (4) procedurally barred on direct appeal (dismissed without prejudice to raise via PCR ineffective-assistance claim) |
Key Cases Cited
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (establishes two-prong test for ineffective assistance of counsel)
- Barker v. Wingo, 407 U.S. 514 (sets four-factor speedy-trial balancing test)
- McGowen v. State, 859 So. 2d 320 (Miss.) (expert who participated in analysis may testify without violating Confrontation Clause)
- Russell v. State, 924 So. 2d 604 (Miss. Ct. App.) (aggravated-assault indictment under §97-3-7(2)(b) need only allege bodily injury with a deadly weapon)
- Buggs v. State, 754 So. 2d 569 (Miss.) (joint trial not error when evidence applies equally to defendants)
- Faraga v. State, 514 So. 2d 295 (Miss.) (trial strategy can justify not seeking change of venue)