State v. Ferrell

*126NEELY, Chief Justice:

Paul William Ferrell appeals his conviction before a jury of kidnapping, second degree murder and third degree arson.1 The appellant assigns myriad errors, many of which are so obviously without merit that we find that they are not fairly raised.2 There are, however, four major assignments in this complex and difficult circumstantial evidence case that warrant extensive discussion.

On the morning of Wednesday, 17 February 1988, the victim, Catherine Ford, a resident of Maryland, received a call from a man claiming to be a magistrate at Mt. Storm, in Grant County, West…