The Arkansas Supreme Court issued a syllabus today. No decisions were handed down, but several cases are listed as submitted. The eight-page syllabus also lists a number of orders disposing of motions.
Yesterday, September 9, 2026, the Arkansas Court of Appeals issued a syllabus listing decisions in ten cases. We'll note one of those decisions here.
Whitt v. State, 2026 Ark. App. 398, involved an appeal from multiple convictions. Whitt argued on appeal a lack of substantial evidence on one element supporting one conviction. The State argued that Whitt did not make this specific argument below, so the argument was not preserved for review.
The Court of Appeals agreed with the State. It noted Ark. R. Crim. P. 33.1(c)'s requirement that a motion for directed verdict must "specify the respect in which the evidence is deficient." A general motion does not meet that requirement. Whitt's motion below failed this test.
Appellant’s directed-verdict motion before the circuit court was only a recitation of the elements of rape. He did not identify the specific element that he now claims the State failed to prove. Because appellant’s motion did not inform the circuit court of the specific issue in the State’s case that is now being challenged, this issue is not preserved for review.
Whitt, 2026 Ark. App. 398, at 3 (footnote omitted). The Arkansas Court of Appeals applied this same rule to another argument on appeal, where Whitt's "directed-verdict motion... was also nothing more than a recitation of the elements of the crime." Id. at 4.
Thank you for reading.
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