Opinion ID: 1110827
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Failure to Object to Jury Instruction on Habitual Offender Status.

Text: ¶ 20. Hughes argues that the circuit court erred in finding that he was a habitual offender in instructing the jury that he would be sentenced to life without parole if the death penalty was not imposed. First, Hughes was a habitual offender. The circuit court conducted a hearing on November 20, 1996, at which the State introduced certified copies of his prior felony convictions for rape and child fondling. It has already been determined that the rape conviction in Arkansas constituted a crime of violence. ¶ 21. Second, a jury should be instructed that a defendant's habitual offender status makes him ineligible for parole as this information provides the jury with all possible relevant information about the individual defendant whose fate it must determine. Turner v. State, 573 So.2d 657, 674 (Miss.1990); see also Berry v. State, 575 So.2d 1 (Miss.1990) (jury should have been informed that defendant was a habitual offender who was ineligible for probation or parole before deciding whether to sentence him to life imprisonment or death). This issue is without merit. It follows that the claim of ineffective assistance of counsel for failure to object to the jury instruction is likewise without merit.