Opinion ID: 1758677
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Whether the Admission of a Sample of Woodward's Blood Which Was Obtained Without a Warrant Was Error for Which the Conviction Should Be Set Aside.

Text: Woodward did not raise this issue on direct appeal. Normally, Miss. Code Ann. § 99-39-21(1) (Supp. 1993) directs that an issue not raised on direct appeal be deemed waived, unless the petitioner can meet his burden to show cause and actual prejudice. Cause is defined and limited to those cases where the legal foundation upon which the claim for relief is based could not have been discovered with reasonable diligence at the time of trial or direct appeal. Miss. Code Ann. § 99-39-21(4) (Supp. 1993). Actual prejudice is defined and limited to those errors which would have actually adversely affected the ultimate outcome of the conviction or sentence. Miss. Code Ann. § 99-39-21(5) (Supp. 1993). Woodward cannot meet the test of cause. Here, the basis of the Fourth Amendment objection to the admission of illegally obtained evidence is certainly by now deeply rooted and well known. This Court has a long tradition of reversing convictions based on the admission of illegally obtained evidence. See Lewis v. State, 198 Miss. 767, 23 So.2d 401 (1945). As for actual prejudice, under the weight of the evidence against him, including written and videotaped confessions, Woodward had practically no chance of escaping conviction even without this evidence. This issue is barred by the waiver of Miss. Code Ann. § 99-39-21(1) (Supp. 1993).