Opinion ID: 1737597
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: was the verdict against the overwhelming weight of the evidence and contrary to law?

Text: Under Stringer's first assignment of error, he claims the verdict in the case was against the overwhelming weight of the evidence. This Court disagrees. In this Court's opinion reversing Stringer's first conviction the following language appears: Suffice it to say that there was substantial evidence in the record from which the jury could have concluded that Jimbo Stringer shot and killed Nellie S. McWilliams while he was engaged with the others in an attempt to rob Birty Ray McWilliams. Stringer v. State, 491 So.2d 837, 839 (Miss. 1986) (Emphasis added). The evidence presented on retrial was essentially the same as that offered at the original trial. The principal witnesses for the State were Mike Medders and Rhonda Brock, two of Stringer's associates in the commission of this crime. Although both witnesses admitted to alcohol and drug abuse during the time frame surrounding the murders, and Brock also admitted to having worked as a prostitute in the past, the jury obviously found their testimony credible. It is the jury's function to assess the credibility of each witness that testifies at trial. Davis v. State, 510 So.2d 794, 796 (Miss. 1987); Harveston v. State, 493 So.2d 365, 370 (Miss. 1986). Officer Lou Davis of the Jackson Police Department and a neighbor of the McWilliams', testified that he heard two gunshots and the sound of a shotgun blast at approximately 9:15 p.m., which is the time frame in which the murders occurred. It has already been noted that Jimbo Stringer was the only person who was carrying a shotgun during the commission of this brutal crime. There was also testimony from James Skinner, who had sold Jimbo Stringer a special-order shotgun in 1980. Dr. Rodrigo Galvez, a forensic pathologist, testified about the nature of the shot that killed Mrs. McWilliams, namely that it had been fired at a downward angle, as if Mrs. McWilliams was kneeling or crawling when she was murdered. He based these conclusions on the pattern of brain tissue on the walls and floor, and by the portion of Mrs. McWilliams' head that had been blown away. His testimony in that regard corroborated the stories of Medders and Brock. This Court's standard of review when the sufficiency of the evidence is challenged is both familiar and stringent: Where such a point is presented to this Court on appeal, we must, with respect to each element of the offense, consider all of the evidence  not just the evidence which supports the State's case  in the light most favorable to the State. Williams v. State, 463 So.2d 1064, 1067 (Miss. 1985); May v. State, 460 So.2d 778, 781 (Miss. 1984); Callahan v. State, 419 So.2d 165, 174 (Miss. 1982); Sadler v. State, 407 So.2d 95, 97 (Miss. 1981). The credible evidence which is consistent with the verdict must be accepted as true. Spikes v. State 302 So.2d 250, 251 (Miss. 1974) We may reverse only where with respect to one or more elements of the offense charged, the evidence so considered is such that reasonable and fair-minded jurors could only find the accused not guilty. Cook v. State, 467 So.2d 203, 208-09 (Miss. 1985); Bullock v. State, 447 So.2d 1284, 1286-87 (Miss. 1984); Dickerson v. State, 441 So.2d 536, 538-40 (Miss. 1983). Matters regarding the weight and credibility to be accorded evidence are to be resolved by the jury. Neal v. State, 451 So.2d 743, 758 (Miss. 1984); Gathright v. State, 380 So.2d 1276, 1278 (Miss. 1980). Davis v. State, 510 So.2d 794, 796 (Miss. 1987) (quoting Fisher v. State, 481 So.2d 203, 212 [Miss. 1985]) Having examined the abundance of evidence in this case against Jimbo Stringer, this Court is of the opinion that it cannot be said that the verdict was against the overwhelming weight of the evidence. Therefore, there is no merit to this assignment of error.