## Facts

- Joan Armstrong died on August 7, 2010, after being struck repeatedly in the head and stabbed; her death was classified as a homicide.
- Her adult son, John R. Armstrong, had a long documented history of serious mental illness (including paranoid schizophrenia with delusions and hallucinations) and was the person who killed her.
- In related criminal proceedings, John was found not competent to stand trial and was committed to a state hospital.
- Joan’s will devised her estate in equal shares to her five children and named another son, Terry L. Armstrong, as executor.
- John’s siblings sought to void John’s devise under Mississippi’s Slayer Statute, Miss. Code Ann. § 91-5-33, which bars inheritance by a person who “wilfully cause[s] or procure[s]” the decedent’s death.
- The chancery court granted the motion and declared John’s devise void without an evidentiary determination of John’s mental state at the time of the killing.
- John, through a guardian ad litem, appealed.

## Issues

1. Whether the Slayer Statute’s requirement that the heir “wilfully cause or procure” the decedent’s death can be satisfied without determining the heir’s mental state at the time of the killing when substantial evidence of severe mental illness exists.
2. Whether a finding of incompetency to stand trial permits a chancery court to apply the Slayer Statute without a separate evidentiary hearing on willfulness at the time of the homicide.

## Decision

- The Mississippi Supreme Court reversed the chancery court’s order voiding John’s devise and remanded.
- The Court held that § 91-5-33 requires a determination of the killer-heir’s mental state at the time of the homicide because “willfully” contains a mental-state component.
- The Court ruled that incompetency to stand trial is not a substitute for findings on the person’s capacity to act “wilfully” at the time of the killing.
- The Court required an evidentiary hearing to determine John’s mental status at the time of the killing before deciding whether the Slayer Statute bars inheritance.

## Legal Principles

- Mississippi’s Slayer Statute, Miss. Code Ann. § 91-5-33, disqualifies an heir only if the heir “wilfully” caused or procured the decedent’s death.
- “Willfully” requires more than proof that the heir caused the death; it requires a mental-state determination tied to the time of the act.
- A criminal-law finding of incompetency to stand trial addresses the defendant’s ability to participate in proceedings and does not resolve the probate question of willfulness at the time of the homicide.
- When the record raises a substantial question about the killer-heir’s mental condition, a chancery court must conduct an evidentiary hearing (including expert evidence as needed) before applying the Slayer Statute to void a devise.

## Conclusion

The court held that probate disqualification under Mississippi’s Slayer Statute cannot be imposed without fact-finding on whether the killing was “wilful,” and it remanded for an evidentiary hearing on the killer-heir’s mental state at the time of the homicide.


Armstrong v. Armstrong (In re Estate of Armstrong), 170 So. 3d 510 (Miss. 2015)