Opinion ID: 1149666
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: did the circuit court err in refusing to grant jury instruction d-4?

Text: Appellant's submitted instruction reads as follows: D-4 The Court instructs the Jury that under the Constitution of the United States, the Jury has a paramount right to acquit an accused person for whatever reason and to find her not guilty, even though the evidence may support a conviction, and this is an important part of the jury trial system guaranteed by the Constitution. The Court further instructs the Jury that this principle of jury nullification is as much a part of and just as important to the constitutional process as any other instruction which the Court has given to this Jury, and that in the final analysis, you, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, are the sole judges of whether or not it is right and fair to convict the Accused or whether under the totality of the circumstances, the Accused should be found not guilty. In arriving at your verdict, you are not compelled to answer to anyone or to the State, nor are you required at any time by the Court or any person or party to give a reason or to be brought to accountability for your decision and vote. The issue of whether the trial court properly denied this instruction is controlled by Davis v. State, 520 So.2d 493 (Miss. 1988) in which an identical instruction was requested and refused. This was Davis' sole issue on appeal of his conviction. In affirming that conviction, this court characterized the requested instruction as a jury nullification instruction, and held that although the jury does indeed have the power to acquit for any reason whatsoever, the defendant does not have the right to an instruction on that point. Courts that have considered this issue have almost uniformly held that a criminal defendant is not entitled to such instruction. 520 So.2d at 494. The instruction was properly denied.