State of Mississippi v. Hattie Hawkins

COLEMAN, Justice,

for the Court:

¶ 1. The trial court sustained the defendant’s demurrer to the indictment, dismissing the case against Hattie Hawkins. The State appealed. We hold that the indictment was sufficient and that the trial judge erred by granting the demurrer.

Facts and Procedural History

¶ 2. Hattie Hawkins was a nursing assistant at Heritage House Nursing Center in Vicksburg. Deserie Edwards, a resident at Heritage House, suffered injuries while under Hawkins’s care. An investigation revealed that Hawkins had lifted Edwards by herself, knowing that two people were required to lift…