Case Name: Aundra Lavell RIDDLEY v. STATE of Mississippi
Court: Mississippi Supreme Court
Jurisdiction: Mississippi
Decision Date: 2000-06-29
Citations: 777 So. 2d 31
Docket Number: No. 1998-CT-00996-SCT
Parties: Aundra Lavell RIDDLEY v. STATE of Mississippi.
Judges: MILLS, WALLER and COBB, JJ., concur.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 777
Pages: 31–39

Head Matter:
Aundra Lavell RIDDLEY v. STATE of Mississippi.
No. 1998-CT-00996-SCT.
Supreme Court of Mississippi.
June 29, 2000.
Rehearing Denied Feb. 22, 2001.
Vicki Lachney Gilliam, Jackson, Attorney for Appellant.
Office of the Attorney General by Jolene M. Lowry, Attorney for Appellee.

Opinion:
SMITH, Justice,
for the Court.
¶ 1. Aundra Lavell Riddley was convicted of murder in the Hinds County Circuit Court and sentenced to life in prison. The Court of Appeals affirmed Riddley's conviction, and this Court granted review on petition for writ of certiorari. This case presents the question whether the prosecutor's use of the fact that the defendant consulted with counsel prior to his submitting to arrest to argue inference adverse to the defendant requires reversal. We hold that, in this case, it does not.
STATEMENT OF FACTS
¶ 2. At trial, Riddley did not dispute that he killed the victim, David Clemmons. Rather, Riddley argued that he killed Clemmons in self-defense. At trial, Tammy McLin, Riddley's girlfriend, testified that Riddley exchanged words with David Clemmons on the night of February 25, 1996, because Clemmons was allegedly selling drugs in front of the McLin residence. She also testified that Clemmons returned the next morning and again became involved in a verbal altercation with Riddley. Bobbie Hawkins, a neighborhood resident, testified that she saw Riddley pull a gun and begin shooting at Clem-mons's feet. She further testified that she saw Riddley chase Clemmons down a hill while Riddley continued to fire his pistol. David Shaw, an MP & L employee, testified that he saw Clemmons stagger into the street and collapse. Shaw did not see a gun in Clemmons's possession, and one was never recovered. An autopsy revealed that Clemmons had been shot six times, twice in the back. Riddley, Tammy McLin, and her sister, Franzetta McLin, testified that Riddley shot Clemmons in self-defense. Riddley fled the scene and checked into a local motel where he stayed until he turned himself in on the advice of counsel.
¶ 3. The jury found Riddley guilty of murder. The Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction and life sentence. Riddley v. State, NO.1998-KA-00996-COA, — So.2d -, 1999 WL 640250 (Miss.Ct.App. Aug. 24, 1999).
DISCUSSION OF LAW
¶ 4. Riddley contends that the State improperly commented on his right to counsel during cross-examination and closing argument by drawing attention to the fact that he sought the advice of counsel before turning himself in. At trial, the following exchange took place between the prosecutor and Riddley:
Q. So the first person you called was this defense lawyer; is that right? -
A.- (Witness nods head affirmatively.)
Q. Right?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. All right. So you called your lawyer, and you told him what had happened; isn't that right?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Well, when did you call the police?
A. When did I call the police? Me and my lawyer went to the detective's office and turned myself in.
Q. How many days did you stay at the hotel before you called the police?
A. I never called the police.
Q. How many days did you stay there before you called your lawyer?
A. Whenever I seen — the day I seen it on the news. That's when I called my lawyer....
Q. Did you ever come back and talk to the police, Mr. Riddley?
A. No, sir.
Q. Did you ever call the police and tell them what happened?
A. No, sir. After I found out what had happened, that it was more than just a, you know, just shooting or something like that, that's when I got in touch with my attorney.
Q. What do you mean? You learned that you had killed somebody?
A. Yes, sir. Once I learned that right there I got in touch with my attorney and told him the circumstances of the case.
Q. You learned the police were looking for you, didn't you?
A. I learned — once I seen it on the news that he was shot, they already— they said that they were looking for somebody, and they didn't even have — I don't know if they had my name or not. I just came. I got my lawyer and told my lawyer what had happened and turned myself—
Q. — Well, you didn't call him and tell him where you were and that you were scared of somebody, did you?
A. Who? My lawyer?
Q. Uh-huh.
A. I told my lawyer—
Q. — Did you call the police and tell them that you were afraid, come get me?
A. No. I got my lawyer. I told my lawyer. You know, I asked my lawyer, you know, what he think that we should do, you know, because I said I want to turn myself in, but I want to turn myself in with a lawyer so it wouldn't be harassment and stuff like that and—
¶ 5. Riddley also contests the following comment made by the prosecution during closing argument:
This guy, who when he went — no job. Just happened to have enough money for cab fare for the five dollar trip and the hotel fee, this 18-year-old who when he realizes that he's killed a man doesn't call his mother. He never called his mother. Who did he call? He called his lawyer. And his lawyer said, we'll turn you in, he said, so that you'll have a chance of getting out on bond because if you run, you won't get a bond when they catch you, and they're going to catch you, and that's why he turned himself in.
¶ 6. The Court of Appeals noted that no contemporaneous objection was made by Riddley's trial attorney to any of these comments and that the issue was procedurally barred. Jackson v. State, 684 So.2d 1213, 1226 (Miss.1996). The Court of Appeals then found that the prosecution comments did not rise to the level of plain error. This Court addresses issues on plain error review when the error of the trial court has impacted upon a fundamental right of the defendant. Walker v. State, 671 So.2d 581, 606 (Miss.1996).
¶ 7. Riddley argues that the prosecutor's questions on cross-examination reflected negatively on his exercise of his right to counsel and should not be considered harmless. Riddley cites United States v. McDonald, 620 F.2d 559, 564 (5th Cir.1980), for the proposition that "comments that penalize a defendant for the exercise of his right to counsel and also strike at the core of his defense cannot be considered harmless error."
¶ 8. Riddley is correct in arguing that it is constitutionally improper for a prosecutor to comment negatively on a criminal defendant's right to counsel. See, e.g., United States v. McDonald, 620 F.2d 559 (5th Cir.1980); United States ex rel. Macon v. Yeager, 476 F.2d 613 (3rd Cir.1973). However, problematic is the fact that to apply this rule in the case at hand, this Court would have to accept the proposition that a criminal defendant has a constitutionally protected right to counsel before any criminal proceedings against him have begun. The United States Supreme Court has long held that the Sixth Amendment guarantees the right to counsel at "critical" stages of criminal proceedings even before trial. Powell v. Alabama, 287 U.S. 45, 57, 53 S.Ct. 55, 77 L.Ed. 158 (1932). For example, the right to counsel attaches during pre-indictment custodial interrogation, Escobedo v. Illinois, 378 U.S. 478, 84 S.Ct. 1758, 12 L.Ed.2d 977 (1964). Never, however, has the United States Supreme Court or this Court held that there is a constitutionally protected right to counsel before a suspect is questioned, or even before a police investigation is instituted.
¶ 9. In this case, Riddley went to a motel after the shooting and stayed there until he heard a news report that the victim had died. He did not know if he was a suspect in the crime or if the police were investigating him at all. The only indication that Riddley himself had that he was a suspect was his own personal knowledge of his involvement in the crime. While Riddley's actions in contacting and counseling with an attorney were probably wise, they were not constitutionally protected at the time.
¶ 10. This Court is aware that there are good public policy reasons to prevent a prosecutor from raising a negative inference of guilt in connection with a criminal defendant's desire to consult with an attorney) On the contrary, we should encourage those in need of legal assistance to receive competent counsel at the earliest possible time. Nor should any negative inference be presented to a jury. It is for that reason that M.R.E. 403 allows a judge to exclude testimony which may be more prejudicial than probative. Any reference to the seeking of legal counsel prior to police involvement in a crime should not be used against a criminal defendant as it would be more prejudicial than probative and should be excluded under the rules of evidence. The conclusion, however, that the prosecutor's comments in this case were improper is not based on a constitutionally protected right to counsel before the police have even approached the criminal defendant about his involvement in the crime.
¶ 11. Furthermore, in United States ex rel. Macon v. Yeager, 476 F.2d 613 (3rd Cir.1973), the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit acknowledged that there exist situations in which the case against a defendant is otherwise so overwhelming that any overreaching by the prosecution in commenting on the defendant's exercise of a constitutionally protected right amounts to nothing more than harmless error. Id. at 616 (citing Milton v. Wainwright, 407 U.S. 371, 92 S.Ct, 2174, 33 L.Ed.2d 1 (1972); Harrington v. California, 395 U.S. 250, 89 S.Ct. 1726, 23 L.Ed.2d 284 (1969)). The Supreme Court's opinion in Doyle v. Ohio, 426 U.S. 610, 619-20, 96 S.Ct. 2240, 2245, 49 L.Ed.2d 91 (1976), clearly permits, on a case-by-case basis, a finding of harmless error. This rule has been reiterated by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. See, e.g., Stone v. Estelle, 556 F.2d 1242, 1245 (5th Cir.1977); United States v. Davis, 546 F.2d 583, 594, 595 n. 31 (5th Cir.1977). The Fifth Circuit has noted that "[e]ven in eases where it was held that a Doyle problem resulted in reversible error, there has sometimes been reference made to the fact that error therein was not harmless because the evidence was not overwhelming." Stone, 556 F.2d at 1245 (citing United States ex rel. Ross v. Fike, 534 F.2d 731, 734 (7th Cir.1976); United States v. Impson, 531 F.2d 274, 278-79 (5th Cir.1976)).
¶ 12. This Court has held that even errors involving a violation of an accused's constitutional rights may be deemed harmless beyond a reasonable doubt where the weight of the evidence against the accused is overwhelming. Kircher v. State, 753 So.2d 1017, 1027 (Miss.1999) (holding harmless any error in admitting accused's confession despite accused's complaint that confession was given involuntarily). See also DeLoach v. State, 722 So.2d 512, 520 (Miss.1998); Thomas v. State, 711 So.2d 867, 872 (Miss.1998). The evidence in the record against Riddley and in support of the jury's verdict is so overwhelming that any error in the prosecutor's comments is harmless beyond a reasonable doubt.
¶ 13. Riddley admits that he shot and killed Clemmons. Riddley's defense, however, is that the shooting occurred in self-defense. This defense is paper thin and was undercut by Riddley's own testimony as well as that of his own witnesses and those of the State. Bobbie Hawkins testified that she observed Riddley pointing the gun at Clemmons's legs and shooting and that she then saw Clemmons running down the hill, with Riddley running down the hill behind Clemmons, still shooting at Clemmons. Hawkins testified that when Riddley began shooting, Clemmons was "just standing there" and that Clemmons never drew a weapon. The physical evidence at trial corroborates Hawkins's testimony in that the autopsy performed on Clemmons revealed that he had been shot a total of six times (twice in the back and once in the back of the leg). The gun Clemmons allegedly used to first attack Riddley was never recovered from the scene of the crime nor was one found on the body of Clemmons or anywhere in the vicinity. David Shaw testified that Clem-mons had no gun at the time he staggered into the street asking for help.
¶ 14. Testifying in his own behalf, Rid-dley testified that Clemmons told him he was "going to get" Riddley and that Clem-mons fired his weapon first. The defense also offered the testimony of Tammy McLin, Riddley's girlfriend, and Franzetta McLin, Tammy's sister, in an apparent attempt to corroborate Riddley's account of the altercation. The separate accounts of the events which allegedly occurred on the day of the crime and on the days after the crime offered by these three witnesses contradict each other numerous times. The individual account offered by each witness at times contradicts testimony given by that witness at the preliminary hearing. For instance, at the preliminary hearing, Tammy testified that she did not know who pulled a gun first, yet, at trial, she stated that Clemmons pulled a gun first. The testimony of Tammy on cross-examination even contradicts her testimony given no more than five minutes earlier. On direct, Tammy testified that she did not hear what Clemmons said to Riddley, yet on cross-examination testified that Clem-mons told Riddley he was "going to get" him. The jury possibly even concluded that, not only could the defense witnesses not keep their stories straight, but that they did not observe the incident at all. The State offered the testimony of Officer J.K. Webb in rebuttal to the testimony of Tammy and Franzetta that they had observed the altercation between Riddley and Clemmons. Webb testified that when questioned about the shooting just hours after it occurred, both Tammy and Fran-zetta told police that they had been asleep at the time of the altercation.
CONCLUSION
¶ 15. The evidence of guilt in this case was very strong, and the jury apparently disbelieved the testimony of the three witnesses offered by the defense. Regardless of the overreaching prosecutorial statements and questioning made at trial, the prosecution successfully discredited the testimony of all three. The challenged remarks did not have an intolerably prejudicial impact in these circumstances. When read in the context of the entire cross-examination and closing argument, these remarks were not prejudicial to Rid-dley, considering the overwhelming evidence of his guilt.
¶ 16. The judgment of the Court of Appeals is affirmed.
¶ 17. AFFIRMED.
MILLS, WALLER and COBB, JJ., concur.
BANKS, P.J., dissents with separate written opinion joined by PRATHER, C.J., PITTMAN, P.J., and McRAE, J. DIAZ, J., not participating.