The Mississippi Court of Appeals upheld the culpable negligence manslaughter conviction against a Scottish man in the 2021 shooting death of his wife in Caledonia.

The court issued its ruling Tuesday.

A Lowndes County Circuit Court jury convicted Wayne Fraser in September 2023 after a five-day trial for the shooting death of his wife Natalie Fraser and sentenced him to 20 years in prison.

On Dec. 30, 2021, Natalie Fraser was visiting Wayne Fraser, who was staying in Caledonia while traveling for his work with Allen Blasting and Coating. At about 8 a.m., Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the home the Frasers were staying in after receiving two out-of-state 911 calls reporting Natalie’s suicide.

The callers, Wayne’s employer Chris Manion and Natalie’s brother Kory Ryan, were concerned because they had received texts and calls from Wayne indicating that Natalie had committed suicide and he was considering killing himself too.

After arriving on the scene deputies and investigators found Natalie’s body with a single gunshot wound to the neck, as well as a bullet hole in the wall and a bullet casing on the floor. A handgun was also found on the couch in the same room.

Wayne told investigators who arrived on the scene that he was holding the gun when Natalie snatched it and held it against her neck before it went off.

While he was held in the Lowndes County Adult Detention Center, Wayne sent Ryan an email that described the events of that night as an accident.

Wayne’s counsel initially objected to the email being entered as evidence, but it was later admitted after both parties agreed to redactions.

Wayne raises the same objection in his appeal, arguing the email should not have been included in the trial. However, the court found no error, ruling the circuit court followed procedure in admitting the email with the agreed upon redactions.

The prosecution during the trial also sought to use emails and photos depicting Natalie with bruises on her face to back up allegations of abuse against Wayne.

Wayne argued the photos should not have been allowed into evidence, claiming they were hearsay and “too remote to be relevant to the case.”

The appeal court denied the claim, ruling the photos were relevant in proving Natalie’s death was not unintentional or an accident.

Wayne also claimed the circuit court erred in his trial after an expert witness on firearms called by the defense was not allowed to testify to how far away from the victim it appeared the gun was fired.

The appeals court ruled there was no error made by the circuit court because the excluded testimony would have been “harmless at best” as the opinion would not have differed significantly from that of the expert firearm witness called by the prosecution.

In his appeal, Wayne also argued the evidence presented at trial was not sufficient enough for him to be found guilty of culpable negligent manslaughter.

The court found no error and said the jury was presented with sufficient evidence and witnesses that showcased inconsistencies in Wayne’s pretrial statements, and they were effectively instructed on delivering a verdict.