Opinion ID: 1834622
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: work habits of pruett's counsel

Text: Pruett was represented by two attorneys: Stephen Bright and Palmer Singleton. Bright documented 449.5 hours work on Pruett's case, while Singleton documented 482.5 hours. [7] This is not Pruett's first time before this Court. This Court originally affirmed his conviction for capital murder and sentence of death. Pruett v. State, 431 So.2d 1101 (Miss. 1983), cert. denied 464 U.S. 865, 104 S.Ct. 201, 78 L.Ed.2d 176 (1983). This Court denied him leave to file a petition for writ of error coram nobis. Pruett v. Thigpen, 444 So.2d 819 (Miss. 1984). After extensive appeals the Federal District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi subsequently granted habeas corpus relief. Pruett v. Thigpen, 665 F. Supp. 1254 (S.D.Miss. 1986), aff'd, 805 F.2d 1032 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 481 U.S. 1033, 107 S.Ct. 1964, 95 L.Ed.2d 535 (1987). Mississippi was not the only state that had an interest in Pruett's prosecution for various crimes. He faced a pending death sentence in Arkansas, two capital murder convictions in Colorado, another murder conviction in Mexico, and a plethora of other priors from all across the country. As was their obligation, Johnson v. Mississippi, 486 U.S. 578, 108 S.Ct. 1981, 100 L.Ed.2d 575 (1988), Pruett's counsel investigated each with a view to excluding them from the retrial. Prior to the retrial of the case, appointed counsel also undertook substantial appellate litigation on Pruett's behalf. Among this litigation included two interlocutory appeals accepted by this Court. In one of these appeals, counsel alleged before this Court that the state had delayed more than the 120 days permitted by the federal district court for retrial. In a written opinion, this Court denied Pruett's petition to bar his retrial. Pruett v. State, 512 So.2d 689 (Miss. 1987). This was not a frivolous matter. Id. at 693 (Robertson, J., dissenting, joined by Prather and Sullivan, JJ.) Counsel also appeared in defense of the trial court's order closing pre-trial proceedings, which this Court affirmed unanimously. See, Mississippi Publishers Corp. v. Coleman, 515 So.2d 1163 (Miss. 1987). Counsel also brought other matters to this Court for decision. These included applications for review of the trial court's denial of his double jeopardy motion, his motion to recuse the trial judge and his motion to disqualify the district attorney. We must remember that the above proceedings included the appellate aspect of the trial. As with all capital litigation, numerous pre-trial motions were heard. In particular, over 100 motions were filed and litigated in the pre-trial proceedings. Each one of these pre-trial motions required investigation, research and writing far beyond that required in the average criminal case. For example, this case presented the question of the admissibility of testimony of witnesses who had been hypnotized; [8] review of videotapes and FBI documents and extensive consultation with experts. Pruett's investigation and pre-trial motions also involved the admissibility of as many as twelve statements to law enforcement officers and the media. Counsel obviously challenged these statements on varied legal grounds. The record reflects that counsel required extensive preparation in various fields of expertise, including hypnotism, pathology, psychiatry and psychology. While preparing for trial, counsel also conducted a thorough investigation to find witnesses in Pruett's favor. Because Pruett is not a native Mississippian, his counsel were required to go to other states to investigate his history and background. Of course, their investigation was to assist in both the guilt and penalty phases of the trial. [9] The actual trial from voir dire through the verdict consumed over four weeks. The selection of the jury itself lasted eleven days. Pre-trial hearings lasted over nine days. As a matter of fact, each attorney spent almost 200 hours in the courtroom. Just for court time, the attorneys were paid slightly more than $5 per hour. This handsome rate decreases substantially when time for trial preparation is factored in. [10] Pruett's counsel paid the price, unlike anyone else involved in this case. [11] For example the trial court authorized payment of up to $5,000 for investigative services in the case. For 5 1/2 hours' work, one investigator was paid $275 or $50 per hour. A second investigator received $2,610, more than both attorneys involved, for time expended on the case. To emphasize the point further, the defense mental health experts were paid $2,545 and $3,154 respectively. The defense pathologist was paid $2,875 and Pruett's hypnosis expert was paid $3,250. A far more startling fact is that the court reporter was paid far more than defense counsel. See, Brief of Appellant at 6, n. 10; see also MISS. CODE ANN. § 25-7-65 (Supp. 1990) (jurors are to be paid not less than fifteen dollars and no more than forty dollars per day). [12] Counsel for Pruett are not alone. [13] Other members of the Mississippi bar who participate in capital proceedings are rewarded with imminent financial ruin. In Mississippi, for example, a lawyer paid $25.36 per hour on overhead in 1988. See, 35 Mississippi Lawyer, No. 5, at 45 (March-April, 1989). Therefore, counsel may well have lost over $23 for every hour worked on the case. This has impacted adversely upon the legal profession in this state. Because of the extreme financial hardship that capital proceedings bring with it, 82% of trial counsel who have represented indigent defendants in a capital murder case would either not accept another appointed case, or would be very reluctant to do so. [14] For the trial judges of this state, this renders the difficult task of persuading competent counsel to take capital cases virtually impossible. As explained by the trial judge in this very case: An experienced attorney cannot adequately represent a defendant in a capital murder case. There are a limited number of lawyers with sufficient legal experience and criminal practice experience to adequately represent defendants in capital murder cases. In the Seventh Judicial District, this pool of attorneys has been exhausted for appointments to defend capital murder cases.    Because of the economic consequences to these lawyers caused by the $1,000.00 statutory fee limitation, I cannot repeatedly appoint these lawyers to defend capital murder cases. Because of the statutory fee limitation, therefore, there is a crisis in obtaining the appointment of adequate and competent counsel to represent indigent defendants in capital murder cases in this Circuit Court district. See, Wilson v. State, 574 So.2d 1338, Vol. ___, T. 55-6 (Affidavit of William F. Coleman at ¶¶ 3, 5) (emphasis added). It is against this backdrop that Pruett and Wilson appeal to this Court asserting that the limitation of the attorney fees is unconstitutional. The appellants suggest that we should rule that § 99-15-17, which requires a one thousand dollar limitation for counsel involved in capital cases, violates the state and federal constitutions when applied to a complex capital trial. They each give several theories to support this position. In the end, we recognize the attorneys' responsibility to provide services to indigent criminal defendants. We, however, also recognize that the limitations outlined in § 99-15-17 are grossly inadequate and unreasonable. Therefore, trial courts must use their inherent powers to assure that counsel are appropriately compensated. Just as Judge Coleman asserts, the limitation has created a crisis that we must remedy. Before we address any issue, we reiterate that the Mississippi Constitution provides the sole adequate and independent state grounds for us to reach this conclusion.