Mississippi Court of Appeals to convene at Alcorn State University April 1

LORMAN, Miss. (VDN)– The Mississippi Court of Appeals will convene at Alcorn State University on April 1 at 10:30 a.m. to hear oral arguments in a criminal appeal case. Attendees must be seated by 9:45 a.m. The event will be held in the Dr. Clinton Bristow Jr. Dining Hall — Gold Room, located on the 2nd floor of the facility.

The court regularly holds proceedings on college campuses and other locations through its Court on the Road program, which educates students and the public about appellate court procedures. The program offers valuable insights, especially for students interested in law, government, journalism, and related fields. The public can attend to gain a broader understanding of the judicial process.

The docket includes James Stanley Roberts v. State of Mississippi, cause number 2024-KA-0358-COA. A Lawrence County Circuit Court jury convicted Roberts of aggravated assault domestic violence and added a sentencing enhancement for using a firearm. On Feb. 7, 2024, Circuit Judge Prentiss Harrell sentenced Roberts to 25 years in prison—20 years for aggravated assault domestic violence and five years for the firearm enhancement. Testimony showed that Roberts shot the victim with a .30-30 rifle, leaving her paralyzed. The incident happened on March 16, 2022, at a residence in Silver Creek.

Legal briefs for both parties are available online. The appellant’s brief can be accessed here, and the appellee’s brief from the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office is available here.

Each side will have 30 minutes to present arguments and answer questions from the judges. After the proceedings, judges will meet with students for a question-and-answer session, though they will not discuss the pending case.

Members of the media, including student journalists, who want to photograph or record the session must file a Camera Coverage Notice. They should submit the form to Clerk of the Court Jeremy Whitmire at jwhitmire@courts.ms.gov and Assistant Court Administrator Camille Evans at cevans@courts.ms.gov. The Camera Coverage Notice form is available here.

Media personnel must follow the Rules for Electronic and Photographic Coverage of Judicial Proceedings, available here.

The oral arguments will not be live-streamed on the Mississippi Judiciary website because the session is taking place outside the Mississippi Court of Appeals’s camera-equipped courtroom.