Justices affirm conviction of man ID’d by facial tattoo in Claiborne County case

Published 9:29 am Friday, August 10, 2018

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — The Mississippi Supreme Court has affirmed the armed robbery and burglary conviction of a man who was identified by a tattoo on his face.

Rickie Omar Smith was convicted in 2017 in Claiborne County. Justices on Thursday rejected Smith’s argument that there was too little evidence to convict him of the crimes.

Court records say an Alcorn State University student was home alone in Port Gibson in April 2016 when three people broke in and ransacked her bedroom. Records say they stole money and several items. The victim testified that Smith punched her and threatened to kill her.

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The victim testified Smith’s face was covered part of the time, but the covering fell and she saw his whole face, including a tattoo. She identified Smith from a photo line-up.