Miskell murder trial postponed; new evidence arises

The first-degree murder and conspiracy trial of V'Nell L. Miskell was halted during jury selection Tuesday morning after new exculpatory evidence came to light Monday afternoon.

The trial will be reset in about a month, 12th District Circuit Judge Jon Mark Weathers said Tuesday morning. This will give Miskell's attorney, Robert Whitacre, time to examine the evidence and decide whether he wants to introduce it at trial. Miskell was not in the courtroom.

Seventy-seven potential jurors arrived at Forrest County Courthouse. Fourteen were excused with legal exemptions, leaving 63 ready to serve before Weathers announced the new evidence. A new jury pool will be brought in when the new trial date is set.

Miskell, 27, is one of two remaining suspects charged with murder in the death of 20-year-old Johnnie Cooper of Hattiesburg, whose body was found the morning of Sept. 11, 2014, in a drainage ditch at Timberton Softball Complex on Helveston Road.

Cooper's was the ninth homicide of 2014 in Hattiesburg. His family told police they had not heard from him since the night before his body was found.

Pedro Barbon Alvarez faces similar charges and is set to stand trial Nov. 29. He was released on bond in February. His bond was set at $75,000 each for the murder and conspiracy charges.

Also charged in the murder was Vernell Daven Miskell, 23, who pleaded guilty Sept. 8 to accessory after the fact of murder. He faces up to 20 years in prison and a $10,000 fine when sentenced.

Vernell Miskell was remanded to the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections, where he is serving a 20-year sentence for an unrelated aggravated assault.

The Forrest-Perry district attorney's office recommended a 10-year sentence with five to serve concurrently with the aggravated assault sentence. In exchange for his plea, the district attorney plans to dismiss the murder charge.

V'Nell Miskell also was charged with automobile burglary, but that and a weapons charge have been passed to the inactive files.

All three men were indicted in December by a grand jury. They originally were scheduled to stand trial together.

A fourth suspect, Asia Nikera Craft, was charged with conspiracy and accessory after the fact of murder. A trial date has been set for Nov. 16, continued from an Aug. 25 trial date. She was released in January on $25,000 bond.