Appeals court denies new trial for Oktibbeha woman serving life for killing husband

An Oktibbeha County woman convicted in the 2009 shooting death of her husband will not receive a new trial after all, following the state court of appeals reversing a previous grant of post-conviction relief.

According to court documents, 47-year-old Verina Childs was initially granted her motion for post-conviction collateral relief by the Mississippi Supreme Court, which was immediately appealed by District Attorney Scott Colom’s office.

In February 2018, an Oktibbeha County Circuit Court judge granted Childs’ amended motion, ruling that since venue — or the location of the crime — is considered an essential element of the criminal process, venue should have been included as an essential element in jury instructions.

The Mississippi Court of Appeals took up the motion this week and ultimately denied Childs a new trial.

On Nov. 22, 2009, Childs and her husband, Doug Childs, went deer hunting together, according to court records. Just after daybreak, another local hunter found Doug Childs’ body at the edge of the woods off of Hawkins Road in western Oktibbeha County.

An autopsy later determined Childs was shot in the back with a hunting rifle.

An Oktibbeha Grand Jury indicted Verina Childs in January 2010 and at trial, investigators said the slug taken from her husband’s body matched those used in the 30/30 Marlin rifle she had carried the day the couple went hunting.

A jury ultimately found her guilty of murder and she was sentenced to life in prison.

In 2018, Circuit Judge Lee Howard granted post-conviction relief for Childs after her attorney made the argument that the jury was never instructed of the “venue” where the murder occurred.

After the Mississippi Court of Appeals reversed Howard’s decision on Tuesday, Colom told the Starkville Daily News that, upon appeal, Childs did not get permission from the state Su