Tommy Vitela, Sr. v. State of Mississippi

GRIFFIS, P. J.,

for the Court:

¶ 1. On November 8, 2005, Tommy Vitela was indicted for sexual battery of a minor in violation of Mississippi Code Annotated section 97-3-95(2) (Rev.2014). Vitela submitted an Alford guilty plea to the downgraded charge of lustful touching. See North Carolina v. Alford, 400 U.S. 25, 37, 91 S.Ct. 160, 27 L.Ed.2d 162 (1970) (defendant can plead guilty to crime and consent to prison sentence without admitting to participation in crime itself). On March 24,2008, the circuit court sentenced Vitela to eight years, suspended, and four years of post-release supervision…