State v. Fox

(Filed Dec. 22, 1998)

As I stated in my dissent to State v. Morris, 203 W.Va. 504, 509 S.E.2d 327 (1998) (per curiam), I am in full agreement with Justice Cleekley’s assessment of State v. Hopkins, 192 W.Va. 483, 453 S.E.2d 317 (1994). Justice Cleckley, in his dissent to Hopkins, said bluntly: “I think this case is wrong.” 192 W.Va. at 495, 453 S.E.2d at 329 (Cleckley, J., concurring in part and dissenting in part). The majority opinion, in following Hopkins, is also wrong in the present case.

It is undeniable that a jury will be more inclined to convict once they hear that a defendant has…