Wednesday, September 27, 2023

Prostitution Charges Dismissed Against Ex-JSU President

 Hinds County Court Special Judge James Bell buried all charges against former Jackson State University President William Bynum yesterday after he was charged with prostution and 

The Clinton police department issued the following statement on July 9, 2020: 

A Clinton Municipal judge has sentenced William Bynum in relation to three charges stemming from a February prostitution sting. 

Bynum was charged with procuring prostitution, possession of marijuana in a vehicle and statement of false identification to a law enforcement officer.
Clinton Municipal Judge Steven Boone handed down the following punishment to Bynum:
  • Procuring prostitution: $200 max fine with 6 months in jail suspended and 6 months court watch;
  • Possession of Marijuana: $350 (vehicle enhancement) 6 months in jail suspended and 6 months court watch. Both sentences run concurrent;
  • False statement of ID: $350 fine
Bynum and McCarthy pled nolo contendre (no contest) to the charges. Pleading no contest or nolo contendere means you admit no guilt for the crime, but the court can determine the punishment.
At the request of counsel, Judge Boone entered a 10 day stay of the order.

Bynum appealed the case to Hinds County Court.  The case just sat on the docket for nearly three years until Judge Johnnie McDaniels held a docket call and dismissed the case.  Judge McDaniels ruled on August 7: 

THIS CAUSE having come before the Court on the motion ore tenusof the City of Clinton, the Court finds that said motion is well taken and therefore granted.

The arresting officer is no longer with the City of Clinton police department and is unwilling or unable to return to testify.

IT IS THEREFORE ordered and adjudged that the above citation for False Statement of I.D., Possession of Marijuana less than 30 gr., and Prostitution, which were appealed from the City of Clinton are hereby dismissed. Any appeal bonds and cost bonds shall be returned to the defendant.



 However, the city of Clinton said not so fast, my friend.  Clinton City Prosecutor Kevin Rundlett filed a motion to withdraw the order of dismissal on August 11.  The motion states: 

Upon further review, there were other officers involved who are available to testify in matter. There is no prejudice to the Defendant as he was not present at said docket call and not sign off on the Order. The City is simply requesting that this case be returned to the trial ket for further proceedings.

Judge Bell denied the motion yesterday.  The Court ruled: 

this Court considered the fact that the supervisor involved in the arrest or the Defendant is no longer employee! with the Clinton Police Department. has relocated to the State ol'Texas. and would likely not return to testify at trial. This Court also considered the fact that another key witness for the City or Clinton is currently incarcerated and would likely be unavailable to testify at trial.  Accordingly, the Defendant would not be afforded an opportunity to cross-examine such witnesses at trial, thereby regulating in undue prejudice.

Attorney Dennis Sweet, III represented the defendant.  

Kingfish note: Anthony Fox is the key witness who is incarcerated.  Frankly, Bell is full of crap and it makes one wonder if he was helping a certain defense attorney.  Inmates testify all the time in court.  The prosecution only has to subpoena the witness from prison.  Deputies would bring a shackled Fox to the courtroom, he would testify, be subjected to cross-examination, and return to prison.  Whether his testimony is credible would be up to the Court to decide. 


31 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is what one calls “the fix”, and it’s in.

Anonymous said...

"that the supervisor involved in the arrest or the Defendant is no longer employee! with the Clinton Police Department. has relocated to the State ol'Texas. and would likely not return to testify at trial. "

Did anyone even make a phone call to the arresting officer and ask if he'd come back to Mississippi for a couple of days to testify? This sounds like an assumption made by the judge.

Anonymous said...

Bell and sweet must be buddies.

Anonymous said...

Your honor, I tender to the court a motion to fix.

Anonymous said...

Does this mean the IHL board can put Bynum back on their list of candidates for president of JSU? Based on their past level of support for JSU he's still the man for the job. Cancel the search committee, they have their man!

Anonymous said...

Bell's former law partner, Ed Flechas, worked for Sweet prior to getting disbarred and still works for Sweet in some capacity. Bell and Sweet are friends.

Anonymous said...

So real talk. I repped a client on a triple homicide in Hinds Circuit. Case was about 6 years old. Murdered two women in a gang hit, one of the women was pregnant. The victim’s family wasn’t really involved in the case, AKA they didn’t have much of a family. Anyway, key police department witness had moved to Texas. Didn’t want anything to do with coming back to testify for anything. Hinds DA wasn’t keen on forcing him. Client pled to possession of a weapon by a convicted felon (found the gun on him). All three murder charges dismissed. It’s not unusual.

Anonymous said...

Sick justice system

Anonymous said...

Prosecution costs money, paying to transport witness from out of state is expensive, all while other cases back up, but letting a 3X killer get loose after short term for a weapon violation?

Anonymous said...

I cannot help but laugh after reading the post and comments. It might be helpful to look at the case file before stating or insinuating that “the fix” is in. Bynum’s case was originally dismissed at the request of the PROSECUTOR for the City of Clinton. He even drafted and supplied the order of dismissal for the court to sign. After requesting to have the case dismissed, said prosecutor apparently received blowback from his superiors and filed a motion to “withdraw” the order of dismissal. Judge Bell simply followed the law in denying the City of Clinton’s request for “withdrawal.” The Bynum file and pleadings are part of a public record. I would suggest reading it before posting additional comments.

Anonymous said...

Folks just can't admit Sweet is the smartest and best attorney in the state just because of the color of his skin.. 30 year track record

Anonymous said...

"...the Defendant would not be afforded an opportunity to cross-examine such witnesses at trial, thereby regulating in undue prejudice."

Who wrote this crap?

Anonymous said...

Wait a second, Judge “house call/carpet cleaner” Bell? The uncle that showed up at the murder house of his nephew George Jr. “to clean up” the scene. Guess everyone forgot the brutal Heather Spencer murder in NE Jackson. Oh wait, i remember he “saved” her roommate his nephew kidnapped and drove her away from Robbie’s murder house. A fine representation of what is happening in the judiciary of JXN/Hind County. The ghost of Ed peters is laughing!

Anonymous said...

@ 7:03 - 'Not unusual', you say. While it may not be unusual for a charge to be dismissed, it SHOULD be unusual for a case to languish 2,3,4,5,6 years.

Anonymous said...

Was Judge James Bell drunk when he wrote that dismissal?

Anonymous said...

Hinds County ... A World of Difference ... and A Very Special Place!

Anonymous said...

Now Bynum will get his arrest record expunged and soon he'll be in great demand for a job at some downtrodden out of state institution. Compliant scoundrels with credentials are in demand in certain situations. Really.

Anonymous said...

Where do these commentors get their law degrees? Were they even in the courtroom when this hearing was held? An order does not delienate all the facts and evidence of a case. And by the way, almost all lawyers and judges are friends. They are definitely not enemies.

Anonymous said...

Once again, it aint what you did.... it's who you know.

Anonymous said...

Nothing more crooked than the law, and those that traffic in it.

Anonymous said...

While 'you people' are chirping about a small-time college president who possessed weed and tried to hook a hooker, you conveniently seem to forget another Hinds County College president who ran whores all over the country while embezzling multiple millions.

The literal paragon of virtue throughout the Bible belt, one who could do no wrong, who, when caught, drank poison but survived, disappeared but was captured, was sentenced at age 78 and soon died.

But he said he was 'right with the Lord'.

But this one did a world of good for the small Hinds County Baptist college...and he was (gasp) WHITE.

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-02-21-mn-34481-story.html

Anonymous said...

9:08 You don't have to have a law degree to know this kind of courtroom flim-flam stinks. A plea of No-Contest is not a guilty plea but it is also not a proclaimation of innocence. The Court then assumes guilt and imposes a sentence on the guilty man. That happened. Because of some unnecessary delay a guilty man's appeal was never heard and so he goes free. That happened.
He was never found Not Guilty but he walks away and ultimately the charges which he does not deny will be dismissed. Was justice served or avoided? DUH.

Anonymous said...

Shit like this would never had happened in years past in Clinton. They used to be on the ball with police and court work. Now it’s turned into a byproduct of Jackson.
G.

Anonymous said...

Let him go. There are more where he came from and the college board has a talent for finding such minions and imposing them on J-State. Let's move on.

As the stomach turns said...

September 28, 2023 at 9:00 AM, do you feel better since you defecated that what-aboutism on the board? Does the fact that you had a similar case with a different skin color somehow make this any less reprehensible? Do two wrongs now make one right? For answers to these, and other, compelling inquiries, tune in for the next exciting post from @9:00 AM.

Kingfish said...

You expect me to go cover a case from 1995ish? Seriously?

Anonymous said...

You all do realize it was Clinton’s motion to dismiss the case initially? And once the case was dismissed Clinton filed another motion to withdraw the dismissal. Judge Bell heard the case and made a ruling. Why didn’t Clinton make sure they had their witnesses lined up before the docket call. Clinton also agreed to dismiss the codefendant in this case.

Kingfish said...

Read the posts. That was reported

Anonymous said...

September 28, 2023 at 9:24 PM, regardless of how this situation reached this conclusion, it is a prime example of the inequality of the misnamed justice system.

Men, and women, that faced similar charges, didn't enjoy the status of the defendant, and were churned through the misnamed justice system, and usually without mercy.

There can be no doubt of the two, even three, tiered misnamed justice system. This only continues to shine the light on the lie of the misnamed justice system.

Anonymous said...

At 10:49, who is either Kingfish or some clown associated with Mississippi College.

The relationship of the two situations is important. Not only is one of them forgotten and ignored but both of them involve College Presidents whose offices were within eight miles of each other and both were a descredit to the profession while taking a virtual crap on their beloved institution.

Kingfish said...

Considering who has worked for the judge in the past, the decision should not come as a surprise.


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