Case Title: Denton v. Maples

Citation: 394 So. 2d 895

Docket Number: 

State: mississippi

Court: Mississippi Supreme Court

Date: 1981-03-04T00:00:00Z

Document:
394 So. 2d 895 (1981) Sue DENTON v. Honorable Darwin M. MAPLES. Misc. No. 1149. Supreme Court of Mississippi. March 4, 1981. *896 Albert S. Johnston, III, Johnston & Steinberger, Pascagoula, for appellant. Bill Allain, Atty. Gen. by Karen Gilfoy, Asst. Atty. Gen., Jackson, Boyce Holleman, Holleman & Krogstad, Gulfport, for appellee. En Banc. ROBERTSON, Presiding Justice, for the Court: On January 21, 1981, Sue Denton filed a Petition for Writ of Mandamus against Circuit Judge Darwin M. Maples of the Nineteenth Circuit Court District, praying that this Court issue a Writ of Mandamus requiring Judge Maples to vacate the January 9, 1981, Order of the Circuit Court of Jackson County directing the Sheriff of the County: This Order was issued by Circuit Judge Clinton E. Lockard. A chronology of events is in order: On January 27, 1976, Sue Denton was convicted of the crime of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon on Doug Lee, and was sentenced to serve a term of eighteen years in the Mississippi State Penitentiary. On May 28, 1976, a motion for a new trial and a separate motion for a judgment of acquittal non obstante veredicto were overruled *897 by the Circuit Court of Jackson County. On July 9, 1976, an appeal from the conviction and sentence was perfected to this Court. On August 10, 1977, the opinion of this Court affirming both the conviction and sentence was announced and published. On August 18, 1977, Judge Darwin M. Maples entered an Order stating: The "Agreed Judgment" in Civil Cause No. 9550 ordered Sue Denton to pay $15,000 damages to Douglas L. Lee, the victim of her aggravated assault. On August 26, 1977, the mandate of this Court affirming the conviction and sentence was directed to the Circuit Court of Jackson County. The mandate closed with this language: The mandate of this Court was ignored and the suspension of sentence remained in effect until Sue Denton was picked up and confined, in accordance with the January 9, 1981, order. The Circuit Court of Jackson County had neither authority nor jurisdiction to issue its order of August 18, 1977, suspending the execution of the sentence of confinement affirmed by this Court on August 10, 1977. The Order of the Circuit Court of August 18, 1977, was a nullity and void ab initio. Black's Law Dictionary, Revised Fourth Edition (1968), at page 1114, defines mandate in this way: The execution of the mandate of this Court is a purely ministerial act. 24B C.J.S. Criminal Law § 1952(1), (1962). *898 In Edmonds v. Delta Democrat Pub. Co., 221 Miss. 785, 75 So. 2d 73 (1954), this Court stated the purpose and role of the mandate in clear and unmistakable language: In a later case, Crocker v. Farmers and Merchants Bank, et al., 293 So. 2d 444 (Miss. 1974), we said: The petitioner contends that Mississippi Code Annotated section 47-7-33 (1980 Supp.), grants authority to suspend the execution of a sentence after it has been affirmed by this Court. We do not construe this section as so providing. § 47-7-33 states: Under section 47-7-33, the suspension can only be made immediately "after conviction or a plea of guilty". The statute also contains this language which sheds light on its meaning: "to suspend the imposition or execution of sentence," and "except that the court shall not suspend the execution of a sentence of imprisonment after the defendant shall have begun to serve such sentence." (Emphasis added). All of this language supports our opinion that the only time a trial judge can suspend a sentence is immediately after the defendant is convicted and at the time the trial judge announces and imposes sentence. If no appeal is perfected and defendant *899 begins to serve the sentence imposed, the time has passed for the trial judge to suspend the sentence under § 47-7-33. The petitioner also contends that General Laws of 1977, Chapter 479, Sec. 5 (effective April 14, 1977), is applicable. The pertinent portion of that section provides: This section, by its very terms, is not applicable and does not in any way impinge upon or vary the specific provisions of Mississippi Code Annotated section 11-3-41 (1980 Supp.), which provides in part: The petition for writ of mandamus is, therefore, denied. PATTERSON, C.J., SMITH, P.J., and SUGG, WALKER, BROOM, LEE, BOWLING and HAWKINS, JJ., concur.