There are countless facts proving Murray’s innocence. But this single jurisdiction violation is enough to overturn everything.
PROOF THE STATE OF ALABAMA DID NOT HAVE JURISDICTION
The State of Alabama never had subject matter jurisdiction in Murray Lawrence Jr’s case. Every official record, expert testimony, and forensic finding places Brandon Hastings’ death in Mississippi, and the State never established Alabama venue. When a court lacks subject matter jurisdiction, the conviction should be void.
JURISDICTION VIOLATION
Alabama Never Established Venue or Jurisdiction
The conviction is void under Rule 32.1(b)
The State of Alabama claimed that Brandon Hastings died in Alabama.
The State never proved that his death occurred in Alabama. Venue was never established. Jurisdiction never attached.
THE LEGAL STANDARD
Under Alabama law and Rule 32.1(b):
A conviction is void if the court lacked jurisdiction.
Venue is part of subject matter jurisdiction in criminal cases.
If the State cannot prove where the crime occurred, the court has no authority to convict.
WHAT THE RECORD ACTUALLY SHOWS
1. Both Death Certificates Were Issued in Mississippi
Transcript pages 848 to 849
McGarry identified State’s Exhibits 72 and 73 as Mississippi death certificates listing asphyxia and probable ligature strangulation.
Alabama produced no death certificate.
2. The Body Was Handled Entirely by Mississippi Officials
Transcript page 649
Brandon’s mother testified the Mississippi coroner contacted her and sent the body directly to Mack’s Funeral Home in Baldwin County.
No Alabama coroner or medical examiner ever examined the body.
3. No Alabama Death Certificate Exists
The full 1,910 page transcript contains no Alabama death certificate, only Mississippi documents.
4. The Autopsy Shows Cause of Death, Not Location
Transcript pages 835 and 860 to 863
McGarry confirmed:
• No bullet
• No bullet path
• No projectile
• Injury consistent with ligature strangulation
The autopsy does not establish where death occurred.
The State offered nothing tying the death to Alabama.
5. The Indictment Alleged an Alabama Gunshot Homicide
Transcript page 598
The indictment claimed Murray shot Brandon in Baldwin County.
The State never proved this allegation.
6. Venue Was Never Established Anywhere in the Record
There is:
• No venue determination
• No judicial finding of location
• No evidence proving an Alabama death
Without venue, jurisdiction never attached.
BOTTOM LINE
This is not a debate about guilt or innocence.
This is about jurisdiction, the foundation of every lawful conviction.
Alabama never proved the death occurred in Alabama.
Alabama never had jurisdiction.
A court without jurisdiction cannot convict.
The conviction is void.
**Rule 32.1(b) Filing
This is the filing that changes everything. It forces the one question that was never answered in twenty years. Did Alabama ever prove it had the authority to try this case. The answer is no.
This Rule 32.1(b) petition is being filed with the State, but it will also become a standalone exhibit in the federal record because the State has never adjudicated jurisdiction. That matters. A federal judge cannot defer to a State ruling that never happened. When a jurisdiction issue is raised without any prior State decision, the federal court must review it fresh.
Alabama can only prosecute a homicide if the act that caused death happened inside Alabama. The State admitted that burden during trial. Then it failed to meet it. There is no Alabama crime scene, no Alabama medical evidence, no Alabama cause of death, no Alabama time of death and no witness placing any fatal act in Alabama. Every official fact lives in Mississippi. The recovery. The autopsy. The death certificates. The documented cause of death.
Nothing in the record places the homicide in Alabama. Nothing gives the Baldwin County court authority to enter a conviction. Jurisdiction was never ruled on at trial, never addressed on appeal and never raised in any State filing until now. Rule 32.1(b) allows this because a court without authority cannot produce a valid judgment.
If this petition is correct, the State does not get a chance to prove jurisdiction twenty years later. The burden was theirs at trial. They failed. A conviction entered without jurisdiction is void. The only legal remedy is to vacate it.
This filing places that truth on the record for the first time. It stands on its own in State court and it will also carry full weight in federal court because the underlying issue has never been adjudicated.