Opinion ID: 2642585
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Anxiety or Concern to the Defendant

Text: ¶53. The second interest to be considered is whether the delay caused anxiety or concern to the defendant. “An analysis of the second interest . . . is related to the considerations discussed under the third Barker factor, the defendant’s assertion of the right.” Hersick, 904 So. 2d at 124. Bateman’s only claim here is that a defendant is presumed to have suffered some anxiety during incarceration. Even when the defendant does not assert any specific anxiety, this Court has presumed that some anxiety is “inevitably present.” Jaco v. State, 574 So. 2d 625, 632 (Miss. 1995) (citing Barker, 407 U.S. at 537 (White, J., concurring)). ¶54. Bateman offered no evidence to the trial court or to this Court that he suffered from any legitimate anxiety or concern during his incarceration. Even assuming some anxiety as a natural consequence of incarceration, Bateman’s own actions contributed to much of the delay in this case. Bateman waited until 310 days after his arrest to assert his right to a speedy trial. Once a trial date was set, Bateman’s seven requests for continuance contributed to a major delay in his trial. Therefore, we cannot weigh this interest in Bateman’s favor.