Eric L. Owens v. State of Mississippi
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IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI
NO. 2008-CP-00036-COA
ERIC L. OWENS
APPELLANT
v.
STATE OF MISSISSIPPI
DATE OF JUDGMENT:
TRIAL JUDGE:
COURT FROM WHICH APPEALED:
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT:
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLEE:
NATURE OF THE CASE:
TRIAL COURT DISPOSITION:
DISPOSITION:
MOTION FOR REHEARING FILED:
MANDATE ISSUED:
APPELLEE
11/07/2007
HON. THOMAS J. GARDNER III
LEE COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT
ERIC L. OWENS (PRO SE)
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
BY: LISA LYNN BLOUNT
CIVIL - POST-CONVICTION RELIEF
MOTION FOR POST-CONVICTION
COLLATERAL RELIEF DISMISSED
APPEAL DISMISSED: 06/09/2009
BEFORE LEE, P.J., GRIFFIS AND BARNES, JJ.
GRIFFIS, J., FOR THE COURT:
¶1.
Eric L. Owens’s pro se motion for post-conviction collateral relief was dismissed as
time-barred by the Circuit Court of Lee County. Owens now appeals the dismissal of his
motion and argues the following assignments of error: (1) his sentence is illegal; (2) his
indictment was improper; (3) he received ineffective assistance of counsel at trial; and (4)
he should be granted relief based on the cumulative errors committed by the circuit court.
We find that this Court is without jurisdiction to decide Owens’s appeal; thus, the appeal is
dismissed.
FACTS
¶2.
Owens was indicted on one count of the sale and transfer of cocaine pursuant to
Mississippi Code Annotated section 41-29-139(a)(1) (Rev. 2005). A jury found Owens
guilty of the crime charged, and Owens was sentenced to twenty-five years in the custody
of the Mississippi Department of Corrections, with ten years suspended and five years of
post-release supervision.
¶3.
Owens appealed his conviction to this Court. The conviction was affirmed on
January 6, 2004. Owens v. State, 869 So. 2d 1047 (Miss. Ct. App. 2004). He filed a petition
for rehearing, which was denied on April 6, 2004. The time for filing a writ of certiorari to
the supreme court passed with no action taken by Owens; thus, the mandate in his direct
appeal was issued on April 27, 2004.
¶4.
Owens filed his motion for post-conviction collateral relief on May 8, 2007. Having
been filed more than three years after the ruling on Owens’s direct appeal, the motion was
dismissed by the circuit court as time-barred.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
¶5.
A circuit court's dismissal of a motion for post-conviction collateral relief will not be
reversed absent a finding that the trial court's decision was clearly erroneous. Williams v.
State, 872 So. 2d 711, 712 (¶2) (Miss. Ct. App. 2004). However, when reviewing issues of
law, this Court's proper standard of review is de novo. Brown v. State, 731 So. 2d 595, 598
(¶6) (Miss. 1999).
ANALYSIS
2
Whether this Court has jurisdiction to decide Owens’s appeal from the circuit
court’s dismissal of his motion for post-conviction collateral relief.
¶6.
The Mississippi Uniform Post-Conviction Collateral Relief Act requires that when
a conviction and sentence have been affirmed on direct appeal, a defendant must seek
permission from the supreme court before filing a motion for post-conviction collateral relief
in the circuit court. Miss. Code Ann. § 99-39-7 (Rev. 2007). Our review of the record on
appeal reveals that no such permission was obtained by Owens.
¶7.
This Court has held that “[t]his procedure is not merely advisory, but jurisdictional.”
Doss v. State, 757 So. 2d 1016, 1017 (¶6) (Miss. Ct. App. 2000). Because Owens was not
granted permission to file by the supreme court, the circuit court did not have jurisdiction
to hear his motion for post-conviction collateral relief. As such, this Court is also without
jurisdiction to decide his appeal.
¶8.
Accordingly, Owens’s appeal is dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.
¶9.
THE APPEAL IS DISMISSED.
ASSESSED TO LEE COUNTY.
ALL COSTS OF THIS APPEAL ARE
KING, C.J., LEE AND MYERS, P.JJ., IRVING, BARNES, ISHEE, ROBERTS,
CARLTON AND MAXWELL, JJ., CONCUR.
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