Opinion ID: 1557127
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Failure to Make Post-trial Motions.

Text: ¶ 45. Finally, Parker argues that trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance by failing to make a motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict (JNOV) or, in the alternative, a new trial. In fact, the record lacks any post-trial motions except for Parker's notice of appeal. ¶ 46. In Holland v. State , this Court dealt with whether a lawyer's failure to make any post-trial motions constituted ineffective assistance of counsel. Holland v. State, 656 So.2d 1192 (Miss.1995). The trial lawyer in Holland failed to make any post-trial motions, to move for a directed verdict, or even to ask for a peremptory instruction. Id. at 1197. On appeal, the Court found that the lawyer's performance amounted to ineffective assistance of counsel because the omissions (1) deprived the trial judge of the of the opportunity to reexamine possible errors at trial which (2) deprived Holland of a fair trial. Id. (following the Strickland standard). ¶ 47. In Simon v. State, this Court distinguished Holland somewhat by stating that, [I]n Holland this Court was concerned with the fact that the trial counsel had completely failed to give the trial court the opportunity to review the sufficiency of the evidence at the end of the trial. Simon, 857 So.2d 668, 690 (Miss. 2003) (citing Holland v. State, 656 So.2d at 1197) (emphasis added). In Simon, trial counsel failed to move for a directed verdict at the close of all evidence, but did file a motion for JNOV, or, in the alternative, a new trial. Id. The Simon Court found that trial counsel's conduct did not constitute ineffective assistance of counsel. Id. In the instant case, Parker moved for a directed verdict both at the close of the State's case-in-chief and again at the end of the trial. Thus, the trial judge had two opportunities to review the legal sufficiency of the evidence, as previously discussed in Issue IV. ¶ 48. We note, however, that [I]n a criminal proceeding, motions for a directed verdict [and JNOV] challenge the legal sufficiency of the evidence supporting the guilty verdict. Croft v. State, 992 So.2d 1151, 1157 (Miss.2008). Here, the trial court had an opportunity to review the legal sufficiency of the evidence, but did not have an opportunity to review the weight of the evidence, as Parker's counsel failed to file a motion for a new trial. Stewart v. State, 909 So.2d 52, 56 (Miss. 2005) (citing Sheffield v. State, 749 So.2d 123, 127 (Miss.1999)) (outlining the standard of review for motions for a new trial). Thus, if the rules from Holland and Simon are applied to this case, the failure to file a motion for a new trial constituted a deficient performance under prong one of Strickland, since the trial judge did not have an opportunity to reconsider whether the verdict was contrary to the overwhelming weight of the evidence. However, Parker's argument must also satisfy prong two under Strickland. Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984). ¶ 49. Even though the trial counsel's failure to move for a new trial constituted deficient performance, Parker fails to show how such deficiency prejudiced his case. Specifically, Parker failed to show how the filing of a motion for JNOV or, in the alternative, a new trial would have changed the outcome of the proceedings. There was no reasonable probability that the trial judge would have granted the motion for a new trial had he been afforded a second chance to review the evidence, as two eyewitnesses testified at trial to seeing Parker use a gun on school property to injure Justin Moore and to kill Jarvis Moore. The evidence in the record overwhelmingly supports the verdict. Further, Parker bears the burden of proving ineffective assistance of counsel, and without showing how trial counsel's failure to make a post-trial motion prejudiced the outcome of his case, he simply does not meet that burden. Thus, this issue is without merit.