State v. Mercer

Justice KITTREDGE:

This is a mandatory appeal from a sentence of death. On March 16, 2002, Army recruiter Sergeant First Class Tracy Davis was gunned down outside his apartment in Lexington County, South Carolina. Kevin Mercer (Mercer) was convicted of murder, armed robbery, and possession of a firearm in the commission of a violent crime, and sentenced to death. In his appeal, Mercer challenges: (1) the disqualification of a juror; (2) the exclusion of evidence, both in the guilt and sentencing phases; (8) the denial of his post-trial motion for additional funds to test gloves for gunshot…