State of Mississippi v. Jimmie Leshaun Gardner a/k/a Jimmie L. Gardner a/k/a Jimmie Gardner

Canton, Mississippi criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with possession of cocaine and felon evasion.

Around 9 p.m. on September 4, 2016, Officer Ryan Jungers of the Ridgeland Police Department was on his way to join other officers conducting a safety checkpoint near the Ross Barnett Reservoir spillway on Lake Harbour Drive in Ridgeland. As Jungers neared the checkpoint, cars began braking in front of him, and suddenly a car with its headlights off began driving toward him against traffic. The approaching car nearly struck Jungers's car and other cars head-on. Jungers activated his lights and sirens and turned around, but the car did not stop and drove away at a high rate of speed. The car turned south on Pear Orchard Road, crossed County Line Road, turned left onto Old Canton Road, and finally turned right on Pine Knoll Drive. The chase lasted approximately fifteen minutes, and the fleeing car ran multiple red lights and reached speeds approaching 100 miles per hour. The chase finally ended when the car turned into a residential neighborhood off Pine Knoll Drive and drove into a ditch at the end of a dead-end street. The driver and passenger quickly abandoned the car and fled on foot. Jungers gave chase and apprehended the passenger, Julian Smith, but the driver escaped. Smith was questioned, and he identified Gardner as the driver.





Jungers conducted an inventory search of the car and found two prescription pill bottles on the driver's side floorboard, one of which contained a partial marijuana blunt and a small amount of marijuana. The pill bottles' labels both showed prescriptions for Gardner. Jungers also found a small amount of "suspected cocaine" in the car. Testing confirmed that the substance was 0.17 grams of cocaine. In addition, Jungers found an Enterprise rental agreement signed by Gardner's mother in the car's glove box. Based on Smith's identification and the evidence in the car, a warrant was issued for Gardner's arrest.



Several days later, the United States Marshals Service arrested Gardner at his home. In April 2017, a grand jury indicted Gardner for possession of one-tenth of a gram but less than two grams of cocaine and felony evasion[1] as a subsequent drug offender and nonviolent habitual offender. Gardner's jury trial commenced in July 2018.





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The jury convicted Gardner of both counts of the indictment. The court sentenced Gardner as a nonviolent habitual offender to serve consecutive terms of six years for cocaine possession[2] and five years for felony evasion in the custody of the Department of Corrections. At sentencing, Gardner's trial counsel represented to the court that he was "going to file an appeal.

The jury convicted Gardner of both counts of the indictment. The court sentenced Gardner as a nonviolent habitual offender to serve consecutive terms of six years for cocaine possession[2] and five years for felony evasion in the custody of the Department of Corrections.



At sentencing, Gardner's trial counsel represented to the court that he was "going to file an appeal.