Miss. Supreme Court

Mississippi Supreme Court Cases

GREGG V. STATE OF MISSISSIPPI

Citation: 2024-KA-01178-SCT Date Decided: August 20, 2026 

Justia Opinion Summary A teenage girl shot and killed her mother and wounded her stepfather after her mother confronted her about drug use at home. Shortly before the incident, she was undergoing psychiatric treatment for depression and anxiety, and her medication regimen had recently changed. After the shootings, she attempted to conceal evidence, contacted friends, and made statements indicating awareness of her actions. Physical and forensic evidence, including gunshot residue and video footage, linked her to the crimes.

The Rankin County Circuit Court indicted her for first degree murder, attempted murder, and tampering with physical evidence. At trial, she raised the insanity defense, presenting expert testimony that she was experiencing severe mental illness and did not comprehend the wrongfulness of her acts. The State countered with expert testimony suggesting she understood her actions. The jury rejected the insanity defense, found her guilty on all counts, and sentenced her to life imprisonment for murder and attempted murder, and ten years for tampering, with the sentences to run concurrently. The trial judge denied her post-trial motions.

The Supreme Court of Mississippi reviewed the case and considered multiple alleged errors, including issues with continuances, mental health evaluations, evidentiary rulings, jury instructions, sentencing procedures, and prosecutorial comments. The Court held that none of the alleged errors warranted reversal, emphasizing that the sentencing instructions, while not ideal, did not result in an illegal sentence. Importantly, it clarified that under the applicable statute, “life imprisonment” for the juvenile defendant does not mean life without parole for first degree murder or attempted murder. The Court concluded that the trial proceedings and sentences complied with both statutory and constitutional requirements and affirmed the convictions and sentences.

WHITE VS. STATE OF MISSISSIPPI

Citation: 2025-KA-00596-SCT Opinion Date: August 27, 2026 Judge: Jennifer Branning Areas of Law: Criminal Law

Police in Jackson, Mississippi, responded to reports of gunshots and hostages at the Rainbow Inn Motel, where they encountered Jermaine White in the lobby with blood on his hands and behaving erratically. Officers found two women, Kiara Poole and Samantha Cannon, dead from multiple gunshot wounds in Room 123. White, who was identified as Poole’s boyfriend, was the only individual seen leaving the room alive according to both eyewitness accounts and surveillance footage. Investigators found significant evidence in the motel room, including a firearm, ammunition magazines, spent shell casings, and cocaine. Autopsies confirmed both victims died from multiple gunshot wounds, with evidence suggesting some shots were fired at close range and while the victims were on the ground.

The case was tried in the Hinds County Circuit Court, where White moved for a directed verdict at the close of the State’s case, arguing that the State failed to prove identity, deliberate design, and possession of a firearm. The court denied his motion. The jury found White guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He was sentenced to two life terms and ten years, all to run consecutively. White’s post-trial motion for a judgment notwithstanding the verdict or a new trial was denied, and he appealed.

The Supreme Court of Mississippi reviewed the case, applying a de novo standard to the sufficiency of the evidence and an abuse-of-discretion standard to the denial of a new trial. The court held that there was sufficient evidence for a rational jury to find deliberate design and affirm the first-degree murder convictions. The court also found no error in the omission of a lesser-included-offense instruction, as White had objected to its inclusion. The Supreme Court of Mississippi affirmed the convictions and sentences.

----- 

Contact Us

News for Southwest Mississippi and East Central Louisiana, including Adams, Jefferson, Franklin and Wilkinson counties and Concordia and Catahoula parishes.Offices:

15044 Blue Marlin Terrace, Bonita Springs, FL 34135
601-431-2990

missloumagazine@gmail.com

Peter Rinaldi, publisher
Clarisse Washington, editor emerita