Opinion ID: 1671742
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: whether the evidence supported a conviction on count iii.

Text: ¶ 38. Count III, of which the jury found McFarland guilty, charged McFarland with falsely signing the name Cassie L. Neyland to Ms. Neyland's application for an absentee ballot. McFarland argues that the evidence was insufficient to support a conviction on this count. We find that this argument must fail. ¶ 39. McFarland first argues that the evidence was insufficient for a conviction because there was no evidence that he was not authorized to sign Ms. Neyland's name to her application, a proposition for which he cites no authority. In any event, we require strict compliance with the statutes concerning absentee ballots in order to ensure the integrity of absentee ballots. Lewis v. Griffith, 664 So.2d 177, 185 (Miss. 1995). An elector applying for an absentee ballot must complete the application form as provided in Miss. Code Ann. § 23-15-627 (Supp. 1996), which application form requires the signature of the absent elector. Nowhere in the statutes is it provided that an absent elector may authorize another person to sign the elector's name to the elector's application for an absentee ballot. This argument is without merit. ¶ 40. McFarland also argues that the evidence was insufficient for a conviction because the evidence showed that Cassie Neyland's absentee ballot was not returned to the Circuit Clerk's office to be counted, another proposition for which he cites no authority. McFarland points out that Jury Instruction S-1 required the jury to find beyond a reasonable doubt that the ballot envelope was returned to the Circuit Clerk's office in order to find McFarland guilty. The flaw in McFarland's argument, however, is that Instruction S-1 set forth the elements of Count I, which charged McFarland with vote fraud in connection with the ballot envelope of Lottie James. The elements of Count III, which charged McFarland with vote fraud in connection with Cassie Neyland's application for an absentee ballot, were provided in Instruction S-3, not S-1. Obviously, in order for McFarland to be found guilty of vote fraud in connection with an application for an absentee ballot, it is wholly irrelevant whether the completed ballot itself was returned to the Circuit Clerk's office to be counted. This argument also is without merit. ¶ 41. The evidence in the case sub judice, which evidence McFarland does not dispute on appeal, showed that the signature on Cassie Neyland's application for an absentee ballot was not that of Cassie Neyland, but was instead written by Calvin McFarland. We find that the evidence was sufficient to support a conviction on Count III.