Williams v. State
2012 Miss. App. LEXIS 187
| Miss. Ct. App. | 2012Background
- Williams indicted (May 1999) for sale/transfer of a controlled substance within 1,500 feet of a school and as a subsequent drug offender; indictment amended to habitual-offender status before voir dire; jury convicted; bifurcated proceeding enhanced sentence; circuit court sentenced Williams to 120 years MDOC custody.
- June 2001 MS Supreme Court affirmed conviction but found insufficient evidence the underlying drug sale occurred within 1,500 feet of a school; remanded for resentencing; on remand circuit court sentenced to 60 years.
- Approximately nine years later Williams moved for post-conviction relief (PCR) challenging the habitual-offender amendment as illegal; circuit court dismissed as time-barred, procedurally barred for lack of supreme-court leave, and as a successive writ; Williams appeals.
- Standard of review requires affirmance of circuit court dismissal unless clearly erroneous; questions of law de novo.
- Rule 7.09 permits amendments to indictments to charge habitual-offender status if defendant is afforded a fair opportunity to present a defense; Burrell v. State allows such amendments as non-substantive for sentence enhancement.
- Court’s disposition: affirm circuit court’s dismissal of Williams’s PCR motion on time-bar, lack of leave, and successive-writ grounds.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the PCR motion was timely filed under §99-39-5(2). | Williams. | State contends time-bar; filed ~10 years after direct appeal. | Yes; untimely under §99-39-5(2). |
| Whether leave to proceed in circuit court was required and properly sought. | Williams. | Leave required from Supreme Court; none obtained. | Yes; circuit lacked jurisdiction due to no leave. |
| Whether the PCR motion was barred as a successive writ. | Williams. | Previous petitions denied; current petition successive. | Yes; barred as successive writ. |
Key Cases Cited
- Burrell v. State, 726 So.2d 160 (Miss. 1998) (amendments to habitual-offender status permitted; affect sentence not substance)
- Epps v. State, 837 So.2d 243 (Miss. Ct. App. 2003) (lack of leave deprives court of authority to reach merits)
- Rowland v. State, 42 So.3d 503 (Miss. 2010) (fundamental-rights toll exceptions to time-bar)
- Trotter v. State, 907 So.2d 397 (Miss. Ct. App. 2005) (time-bar exceptions to §99-39-5(2) applied)
- Dobbs v. State, 18 So.3d 289 (Miss. Ct. App. 2009) (standard of review for PCR rulings)