Joiner v. Mississippi
Annotate this CaseIn September, 2007, a grand jury returned a two-count indictment against Defendant Albert Joiner. One count charged Defendant with “felony flight,” and the second count charged Defendant with being a felon in possession of a deadly weapon. The indictment did not charge Defendant as being a “habitual offender.” In a separate case, Defendant had a pending indictment for armed robbery as a habitual offender. Defendant and the State reached a plea agreement: the State would dismiss the possession charge and reduce the armed-robbery charge if Defendant would plead guilty to felony flight and robbery as a “lesser habitual offender.” Defendant accepted the deal, pled guilty, and was sentenced to a total of nineteen years as a habitual offender. Defendant moved for post-conviction relief, arguing that the trial court erred by charging him as a habitual offender when the grand jury’s indictment made no mention of it. The trial judge summarily denied his petition, and Defendant appealed. The Supreme Court found that because of Defendant’s “knowing an voluntary guilty plea,” Defendant waived his right to contest any deficiency in the indictment. The Court affirmed the lower courts’ decisions.
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