Jewel v. State
Jewel v. State
Opinion of the Court
for the Court:
¶ 1. Curtis Jewel a/k/a Curtis Clay a/k/a Curtis Lee Jewel appears before this Court to appeal his felony DUI conviction in the Coahoma County Circuit Court. During a one day trial by jury conducted on November 18, 1998, Jewel was convicted on three separate counts; Count I charged a felony DUI, Count II alleged chiving with a suspended driver’s license, and Count III accused him of making false statements to a police officer. Immediately following the bifurcated trial, Jewel was sentenced to serve five years for the felony DUI, one year for driving with a suspended driver’s license and six months for making false statements to a police officer. Both parties stipulated that Jewel had been convicted on at least two prior incidents of driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor, thus making him eligible to be sentenced under the habitual offender statute. Under Miss. Code Ann. § 99-19-81 (Rev. 1994),
I. WHETHER THE WEIGHT AND SUFFICIENCY OF THE EVIDENCE PRESENTED AT TRIAL CAN SUPPORT A GUILTY VERDICT FOR COUNT I OF THE INDICTMENT
Believing it can, we affirm.
FACTS
¶ 2. Jewel was driving to work on November 2, 1998, around 6:00 p.m. He noticed a roadblock a quarter of a mile up the road he was traveling. Jewel immediately turned his yellow Camaro around in the middle of the road and drove in the opposite direction at a high rate of speed, up to seventy-five miles per hour, weaving across lane markers. Two police officers manning the blockade gave chase, eventually catching him. Jewel pulled over, exited the car from the driver’s side and spoke with the officers. A quick check through the National Crime Information Center computer revealed that Jewel lied to the officers by giving them the fake name “Freddy Williams”and a fake social security number. Jewel further deceived the police when he told them that he did not have his driver’s license with him, when in fact, he had a suspended driver’s license and an expired driver’s permit in the name “Ctatis Clay”.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
¶ 4. Jewel challenges his conviction and five year prison sentence based upon a claim that the weight and sufficiency of the evidence were unable to support his conviction. The standards of review regarding challenges to the weight and sufficiency of the evidence supporting a jury verdict are well documented.
¶ 5. The challenge to the weight of the evidence via motion for a new trial implicates the trial court’s sound discretion. McClain v. State 625 So.2d 774, 781 (Miss. 1993). New trial decisions rest in the sound discretion of the trial court, and the motion should not be granted except to prevent an unconscionable injustice. McClain, 625 So.2d at 781. Reversal should only be considered if the trial court abused its discretion. On review, the appellate court should accept as true all evidence favorable to the State. Id. at 781. Matters regarding the weight and credibility of the evidence are to be resolved by the jury. Neal v. State, 451 So.2d 743, 758 (Miss. 1984); Gathright v. State, 380 So.2d 1276, 1278 (Miss. 1980). The appellate courts are authorized to reverse only where, with respect to one or more of the elements of the offense charged, the evidence considered is such that reasonable and fair-minded jurors could only find the accused not guilty. Fisher v. State, 481 So.2d 203, 212 (Miss. 1985).
¶ 6. Jewel’s motion to set aside the conviction notwithstanding the verdict is essentially a motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict (JNOV). Three challenges (motion for directed verdict, request for peremptory instruction, and motion for JNOV) challenge the legal sufficiency of the evidence. Since each requires consideration of the evidence before the court when made, the appellate court should properly review the ruling on the last occasion the challenge was made in the trial court. In appeals from an overruled motion for JNOV the sufficiency of the evidence as a matter of law is viewed and tested in a light most favorable to the State. Esparaza v. State, 595 So.2d 418, 426 (Miss. 1992); Harveston v. State, 493 So.2d 365, 370 (Miss. 1986); May v. State, 460 So.2d 778, 780-81 (Miss. 1984); Callahan v. State, 419 So.2d 165, 174 (Miss. 1982). The credible evidence consistent with the defendant’s guilt must be accepted as true. Spikes v. State, 302 So.2d 250, 251 (Miss. 1974). The prosecution must be given the benefit of all favorable inferences that may be reasonably drawn from the evidence. Hammond, v. State, 465 So.2d 1031, 1035 (Miss. 1985).
LEGAL ANALYSIS
I. WHETHER THE WEIGHT AND SUFFICIENCY OF THE EVIDENCE PRESENTED AT TRIAL CAN SUPPORT A GUILTY VERDICT FOR COUNT I OF THE INDICTMENT
¶ 7. At trial, Jewel testified and denied much of the testimonial evidence given by the police officers on behalf of the State. He also offered his wife as a witness to testify that the bottle of Crown Royal belonged to her. However, the police officers testified that Jewel fled from the road block at a high rate of speed,
¶ 8. THE JUDGMENT OF THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COAHOMA COUNTY OF THE CONVICTION OF COUNT I FELONY DUI AND SENTENCE OF FIVE YEARS AS AN HABITUAL OFFENDER; COUNT II DRIVING WITH A SUSPENDED DRIVER’S LICENSE AND SENTENCE OF ONE YEAR AS AN HABITUAL OFFENDER TO RUN CONCURRENTLY WITH THE SENTENCE IN COUNT I BOTH TO BE SERVED WITH THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS; COUNT III MAKING FALSE STATEMENTS AND SENTENCE OF SIX MONTHS TO RUN CONCURRENTLY WITH THE SENTENCES IN COUNT I AND COUNT II TO BE SERVED IN THE CUSTODY OF THE COAHOMA COUNTY JAIL IS AFFIRMED. ALL COSTS OF THIS APPEAL ARE ASSESSED TO COAHOMA COUNTY.
. The above referenced statute reads as follows:
§ 99-19-81 (Rev. 1994) — Habitual criminals: maximum term
Every person convicted in this state of a felony who shall have been convicted twice previously of any felony or federal crime upon charges separately brought and arising out of separate incidents at different times and who shall have been sentenced to separate terms of one (1) year or more in any state and/or federal penal institution, whether in this state or elsewhere, shall be sentenced to the maximum term of imprisonment prescribed for such felony, and such sentence shall not be reduced or suspended nor shall such person be eligible for parole or probation.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.