Seales murder conviction upheld by state appeals court

Seales murder conviction upheld by state appeals court

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A Neshoba County man convicted of attempted first-degree murder had his sentence upheld by the state Court of Appeals this week.

The man, Corderro Seales, was found guilty in Neshoba County Circuit Court in November 2023 and was sentenced to 25 years in prison as a habitual offender.

According to court documents, the conviction is tied to an altercation on January 11, 2023, where Seales stabbed a man, Dennis Carter, five times during a confrontation outside of Carter’s home.

Witnesses testified that Seales had been involved in a dispute with his girlfriend, Bianca Rush, outside of her family’s home next door shortly before the incident.

Carter testified that at some point during the altercation between Rush and Seales, he yelled at them to “chill out” before the altercation between the two moved near Carter’s mother’s car parked in the driveway.

Carter also testified that he heard threatening statements made by Seales. According to Rush, Seales was under the influence of drugs on the evening of the incident, and she had told him to leave her home.

As Seales passed by Carter’s house, Carter invited him over to calm down with a drink. Instead, Seales attacked Carter by punching him in the ribs and stabbing him in the back five times with a knife, before fleeing the scene.

Carter was airlifted to UMC Hospital in Jackson for treatment. He sustained two broken ribs and punctured lungs, which collapsed as a result of the stabbing.

Carter testified that he could not get out of bed for almost three weeks and was “totally out of commission for about two full months.”

Seales was indicted for attempted first-degree murder on April 25, 2023.

After a one-day trial on Nov. 13, 2023, a Neshoba County jury found Seales guilty as charged, and he was sentenced as a habitual offender to serve twenty-five years in MDOC custody.

On appeal, Seales argued that the evidence was insufficient to prove intent to kill, and that the stabbing could be classified as aggravated assault.

The Court disagreed, stating that intent can be inferred from Seales’ threatening statements, actions, and the life-threatening injuries inflicted.

The Court concluded that a reasonable jury could find Seales acted with deliberate intent to kill, affirming both the conviction and sentence.






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