Opinion ID: 1822272
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: whether the trial court erred in denying the appellant's motion in limine to exclude or in the alternative to limit introduction of photographic evidence.

Text: ¶ 16. During pre-trial motions, McDowell presented a motion in limine to either exclude or limit the State's photographic evidence. McDowell argued that the prejudicial value exceeded the probative value of the photographs. There were a total of thirty-nine photographs pertaining to the incident. However, the State only introduced six of them during the trial. The photos admitted included one of Whitten's body as found at the scene, two of the trail of blood that led from the parking lot into the store, two morgue pictures that showed the gunshot wound to Whitten's head and one that showed bruises and abrasions on Whitten's face and legs. These are all probative by showing the crime scene and the cause of death. They also corroborated Hill's confession to Officer Walter Davis, in which he stated that he dragged Whitten's body from the parking lot into the store and that McDowell searched his pockets for the keys. ¶ 17. The admissibility of photographs rests within the sound discretion of the trial judge. Griffin v. State, 557 So.2d 542, 549 (Miss.1990). Photographs have evidentiary value where they aid in describing the circumstances of the killing and the corpus delicti, where they describe the location of the body and cause of death, and where they supplement or clarify witness testimony. Westbrook v. State, 658 So.2d 847, 849 (Miss.1995)(citing Williams v. State, 354 So.2d 266 (Miss. 1978); Ashley v. State, 423 So.2d 1311 (Miss.1982); Hughes v. State, 401 So.2d 1100 (Miss.1981)). ¶ 18. Because the photographs were more probative than prejudicial in value, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in admitting them into evidence.