Maurice Townsend v. State of Mississippi

CARLTON, J.,

for the Court:

¶ 1. A Lafayette County jury found Maurice Townsend guilty of simple assault on a law enforcement officer. See Miss. *618Code Ann. § 97-3-7(1) (Supp.2011).1 The circuit court then sentenced Townsend to five years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDO©, with one year to serve, four years suspended, and. four years of postrelease supervision. On appeal from his conviction and .sentence, Townsend raises the following issues: (1) whether his indictment was fatally defective; (2) whether Mississippi should extend the holding of Batson v. Kentucky,…