Opinion ID: 2537633
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Whether the court committed reversible error by allowing the jury to consider pecuniary gain and robbery as separate and distinct aggravators.

Text: ¶ 69. By statute, the Legislature has limited the aggravators the State can attempt to prove at sentencing. Mississippi Code Section 99-19-101 provides in relevant part that: Aggravating circumstances shall be limited to the following: . . . . (d) The capital offense was committed while the defendant was engaged in, or was an accomplice, in the commission of, or an attempt to commit, or flight after committing or attempting to commit, any robbery[.] . . . . (f) The capital offense was committed for pecuniary gain. [68] Over Fulgham's objection, the court allowed the jury to consider both the robbery and the pecuniary-gain aggravators. Fulgham argues that the felony-murder aggravator is unconstitutionally duplicative and that the indictment failed to list the aggravators. We quickly dispose of this second argument, since this Court repeatedly has held that the use of an underlying felony as an aggravating factor is constitutional and that an indictment of capital murder does not have to list the statutory aggravators. [69] ¶ 70. In Ladner v. State , the Court held that where the indictment charges a robbery/murder capital offense and robbery is designated as an aggravating circumstance, pecuniary gain should not be used as an aggravating circumstance unless clearly supported by the evidence.  [70] In Willie v. State , the Court extended its holding in Ladner and ruled: Today, we go one step further. Not only should the two aggravators not be given as separate and independent aggravators when they essentially comprise one, they may not be given. When life is at stake, the jury cannot be allowed the opportunity to doubly weigh the commission of the underlying felony and the motive behind the underlying felony as separate aggravators. [71] ¶ 71. The purpose of this holding is to minimize those cases in which the same conduct will support multiple aggravators. In this case, the relevant inquiry is whether the evidence supported a finding that Fulgham had committed the murder in the expectation that she would receive some pecuniary gain separate and apart from the robbery proceeds. We find that there was evidence to support the pecuniary-gain aggravator for conduct distinct and separate from the robbery-murder aggravator. First, as to the robbery aggravator, the State presented evidence that Joey's wallet had been stolen. Shannon Fulgham testified that he saw Joey cash his paycheck for approximately $1,020 and place the money in his wallet on Friday (the day before the murder). He further testified that Joey had always carried a wallet. Kyle Harvey testified that, on their Coast trip (which began on the day of the murder), Fulgham paid for everything  food, souvenirs, and hotel room  with cash, even though she was unemployed at the time. Therefore, the State presented evidence in support of the robbery aggravator: Joey's missing wallet (and its contents). ¶ 72. The State also introduced evidence of the pecuniary-gain aggravator in support of its theory that Fulgham's motive for the murder was to collect life-insurance proceeds. Scotty Carrithers, who in 2003 handled life-insurance records for the National Guard, testified that Fulgham had called him and inquired as to the amount of Joey's life-insurance policies. Scotty testified that he had refused to release the information to Fulgham, but that Fulgham was the beneficiary of a $55,000 policy. Scotty also testified that Fulgham once was the beneficiary of a second policy worth $255,000, but that Joey had changed the beneficiary to his mother. Fulgham's biological father also testified that she had told him I want him dead, and that he has a life insurance policy, and . . . the kids would get $300,000, and I would get $200,000. And that she would buy me  I would look good sitting in a Cadillac, if I would keep my mouth shut. We find sufficient evidence existed to support the pecuniary-gain aggravator. [72]