Opinion ID: 1936097
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 25

Heading: whether the circuit court erred in prohibiting defense counsel from presenting arguments on the influence of race upon the death penalty

Text: Before closing arguments were made in the sentencing phase of the trial, the circuit court granted the State's ore tenus motion in limine to prohibit the defense from making racial arguments against the death penalty. Jackson raised no objections. He now contends that the court's ruling inhibited his ability to exercise the wide latitude afforded to attorneys in making closing arguments and created a risk that the trial could be tainted by racial prejudice. Jackson's claim is procedurally barred by his failure to make a timely objection at trial. Russell v. State, 607 So.2d 1107, 1117 (Miss. 1992); Fleming v. State, 604 So.2d 280, 292 (Miss. 1992). Even looking at the merits of his argument, Jackson's reliance on McCleskey v. Kemp, 481 U.S. 279, 107 S.Ct. 1756, 95 L.Ed.2d 262 (1987) is misplaced. While McCleskey may, as Jackson suggests, stand for the proposition that racial arguments may be appropriate in some situations, it certainly does not hold that such arguments are necessarily proper for presentation to the jury. Moreover, as distinguished from McCleskey, Jackson makes no claim of racial bias, presents no proof of racial bias and was not faced with any potential bias on the basis of the race of his victims. Accordingly, there is no merit to his argument.