Sample stands accused of murdering Makayla Winston and her unborn child
Attala County native Terrence Kendale Sample, 33, stands accused of murdering 21-year-old Makayla Winston of Goodman and her unborn child, who was due July 4. He is also charged with kidnapping in the case.
According to court filings submitted by Kosciusko attorney Richard Carter, however, Sample’s rights have repeatedly been violated since he turned himself in to the Holmes County Sheriff’s Department on the day Winston’s remains were found.
Winston’s body was found by a relative of Sample's on Monday, July 1, about six miles from where law enforcement officials reportedly found her abandoned vehicle with the keys still in the ignition on Friday, June 24. According to media reports, Winston’s cell phone was found in a nearby ditch, but the phone had been wiped of all text messages. Holmes County Sheriff Willie March said at the time that the Mississippi Bureau of Investigations was working to recover the deleted messages.
The Star-Herald obtained copies of Carter’s filings on Sample’s behalf from the Holmes County Circuit Court clerk’s office on Tuesday, July 9. Carter declined comment when contacted by phone. District Attorney Akillie Malone-Oliver was not available for comment as the paper went to press late Tuesday afternoon.
According to a filing of a Writ of Habeas Corpus on July 2— and a revised Writ filed July 8 — Carter charges that law enforcement has violated his client’s rights in several instances since he first turned himself in to the Holmes County Sheriff’s Office on the afternoon of Monday, July 1.
Sample reportedly arrived at the sheriff’s office around 3:30 p.m. Approximately three hours later, after several hours of questioning by personnel of the sheriff’s office and the Mississippi Bureau of Investigations, Sample was allegedly told he was being charged with obstruction of justice. The filing states that neither charging documents nor an arrest warrant on those charges have been received by the defense.
The filing also suggests that, although Judge Neal was present in the building at the time — which would have allowed for a bond hearing for Sample — Carter was told that bail could not be set because a judge could not be located.
“When pressed on the issue, Captain Sam Chambers stated that he (Sample) would not be receiving bond tonight,” according to the filing.
As a result, the first Writ of Habeas Corpus states that Sample was being illegally detained without due process on the purported obstruction charge.
It was not until Tuesday, July 2, that Sample was charged with a crime, in this case two counts of murder and one count of kidnapping, after Carter demanded a hearing for his client, the filing states.
On July 3, the Sample’s rights were again violated when counsel was not informed that Sample was going to be transferred to Yazoo County to appear before Justice Court Judge Warrington, according to the filings. Sample, the son of Attala County Justice Court Judge Rosie Massey Sample, was reportedly transferred to Yazoo County because both Holmes County judges recused themselves since they know Sample’s mother.
During the Yazoo County hearing, Sample was reportedly denied bond without his attorney present.
That same day, Carter filed for a preliminary hearing to take place within 14 days, as prescribed by the Mississippi Code of Criminal Procedure. The amended Writ of Habeas Corpus indicates, however, that Carter was informed on July 8 that “the only available hearing dates were August 1 and August 22, 2019.”
“This amended petition will also serve as notice to the Circuit Court that there has been an inexplicable delay with regards to a preliminary hearing,” the filing states.
In a related petition, Carter also accuses the state and law enforcement of trying the case in the media, violating the rules of criminal procedure. The petition charges officials, particularly Holmes County Sheriff Willie March, of releasing information related to “the identity, testimony, or credibility of prospective witnesses” and “the defendant’s guilt or innocence, or other matters relating to the merits of the case, or the evidence in the case.”
The petition includes photocopies of dozens of media reports that quote or paraphrase information allegedly provided by law enforcement officials, including March, and requests that the court issue an order specifically barring state and law enforcement officials from making further comment in the case.
