Jonathan Harrelson v. State of Mississippi

Summary

The court affirmed Harrelson’s statutory-rape conviction and forty-year sentence. It held that although the prosecutor improperly commented on the absence of two potentially accessible witnesses, the unobjected-to comments did not constitute reversible plain error because the State presented substantial evidence of guilt and Harrelson was not prejudiced. The court also rejected his ineffective-assistance claim and concluded that the verdict was not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence.