Warren L. Lewis Revocable Trust v. Mississippi

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The Lamar County Sheriff’s Department (LCSD) arrested Warren Lewis for possession with intent. Lewis ultimately pled guilty in federal court to possession with intent to distribute five grams or more of methamphetamine. Shortly thereafter, the State initiated a forfeiture proceeding and sought real property, personal property, and currency owned by Lewis. The trial court awarded the State all of the property sought. Lewis moved for a new trial, or alternatively, to amend the judgment, which the trial judge denied. During the pendency of these proceedings, Lewis died. He had previously transferred all of his property into a revocable trust, naming David Smith as trustee. As trustee of Lewis’ revocable trust, Smith appealed. Mississippi law required a nexus between the offense and the property in order to render the property forfeitable. Here, the State failed to establish the required nexus between some of Lewis’ property and his criminal conduct. As such, the Supreme Court affirmed forfeiture of certain property for their direct nexus to Lewis' crimes, but reversed as to others. View "Warren L. Lewis Revocable Trust v. Mississippi" on Justia Law