Justia Georgia Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

Jeffrey McGee appealed the denial of his motion in arrest of judgment, which McGee filed nearly fifteen years after having pled guilty to malice murder, aggravated battery, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in connection with the shooting death of police officer Robbie Bishop. McGee claimed his original plea agreement was invalid based on the trial court having originally sentenced him for both malice murder and aggravated battery. The Georgia Supreme Court determined McGee’s motion was untimely, whether considered as a motion to withdraw his guilty plea or as a motion in arrest of judgment. Both sorts of motions must be filed within the same term of court at which the guilty plea or judgment being challenged was entered. View "McGee v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Otis Ricks was indicted along with three other men for murder, armed robbery, criminal street gang activity, and related crimes in connection with the 2012 shooting death of Vanessa Thrasher at a lounge in Atlanta. The State notified Ricks it intended to seek the death penalty for Ricks and at least one of his co-defendants, Demario Carman. The defendants’ cases were severed for trial, although some of Ricks’s and Carman’s pretrial proceedings were conducted jointly. During the pretrial proceedings, Carman filed a motion asking the trial court to issue an order declaring Fulton County’s method of selecting trial jurors to be in violation of the Georgia Supreme Court’s Jury Composition Rule and directing that his jury be selected in a manner not violating the Rule. The trial court applied to the Supreme Court for review, asking whether it erred in denying Rick’s claim that the list from which the jurors were summoned was produced in a manner that violated the Jury Composition Rule. The Supreme Court concluded the trial court indeed did so err, and reversed and remanded for jury selection in a manner that complies with the Rule. View "Ricks v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Appellant Travis Rabon was tried and convicted of numerous offenses in connection with the 2008 murder of Keira Avant and the rape of a second victim. Rabon appealed, claiming three instances of trial court error: (1) for denying his request for money for investigators; (2) for denying his request for experts; and (3) denying his request for a continuance. Finding no error, the Georgia Supreme Court affirmed Rabon’s convictions. View "Rabon v. Georgia" on Justia Law

In 2009, Nicholas Johnson was indicted for shooting Tremaine Cobb in a Waffle House parking lot. A jury found Johnson guilty of felony murder and two counts of aggravated assault, and Johnson appealed, arguing there was insufficient evidence to support his convictions for felony murder and aggravated assault, that the trial court erred by refusing to sever Johnson’s trial from a co-defendant’s trial, and that the trial court abused its discretion in denying the jury’s request to view, during deliberations, surveillance video of the shooting that was admitted as evidence and shown during the trial. Finding no merit in these enumerated errors, the Georgia Supreme Court affirmed. View "Johnson v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Following the partial denial of his motion for new trial, Nicholas Wilson appealed his convictions and sentences for malice murder and other crimes in connection with the November, 2009 robbery of Cassandra James and her fatal stabbing in December, 2009. His sole challenge on appeal was that the trial court erroneously excluded an out-of-court declaration regarding certain evidence in the case. Finding no reversible error, the Supreme Court affirmed. View "Wilson v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Robert Smith was found guilty of malice murder, felony murder, and other offenses in connection with the shooting death of his friend, Raymond Brewer, Jr. On appeal, Smith contends that the trial court committed plain error in its jury instruction on witness credibility and that the trial court erred in its jury instruction on self-defense. Finding only that the trial court erred in merging possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony with malice murder, the Supreme Court affirmed Smith’s conviction, vacated the sentence, and remanded for resentencing. View "Smith v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Appellee Quantavious Harris was convicted of felony murder and related offenses in connection with the 2009 shooting death of taxicab driver Stephen Anim. Harris timely filed a motion for new trial claiming, among other things, that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to move to suppress text messages obtained from Harris’ cell phone by law enforcement without a warrant. After a hearing, the trial court agreed with Harris and granted the motion. The State appealed, contending that the trial court’s conclusion regarding “Strickland” prejudice was erroneous. The Supreme Court agreed with the State, after review of the trial court record, and therefore reversed the trial court’s grant of a new trial. View "Georgia v. Harris" on Justia Law

Willie Jones was convicted by jury of felony murder for the death of his four-year-old daughter, Ty’Asia Phillips. He appealed on the sole ground that he was convicted by general verdict on a count of felony murder that contained two predicates, one of which, he claimed, there was insufficient evidence to support. Because the Supreme Court found there was sufficient evidence to convict Jones of felony murder based on one of the two charged predicates for felony murder, and that this was enough to sustain his conviction, the court affirmed. View "Jones v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Freedell Benton was convicted by jury of malice murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and various other offenses in connection with the shooting death of Drexel Berry. On appeal, Benton contended: (1) the evidence presented at trial was insufficient to support his conviction; (2) the trial court erred by allowing the jurors to submit questions to be posed to witnesses; (3) the trial court erred when it allowed into evidence certain autopsy photographs; and (4) that his trial counsel was ineffective. The Supreme Court affirmed in part, vacated in part, and remanded for resentencing. The Court found that the portion of the sentence purporting to merge the possession of a firearm by a convicted felon count into malice murder was made in error. View "Benton v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Wayne Welbon appealed his conviction for the murder of Taurean Reeves. Welbon argued on appeal: (1) his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to move to strike for cause a certain prospective juror; and (2) the trial court erred by allowing the State to present testimony regarding statements he allegedly made to the police, contending any such statements were given involuntarily. Because the trial court applied the wrong legal standard by erroneously placing the burden on Welbon to show that his statements were involuntary, and because the Supreme Court could not say, after review, that there was no evidence before the trial court that would authorize the grant of a motion to suppress. The Court vacated the trial court’s order denying Welbon’s motion for new trial and remanded this case to the trial court for consideration of Welbon’s claim of involuntariness under the proper standard. View "Welbon v. Georgia" on Justia Law