• Mackey v. The State

    Publication Date: 2017-10-05
    Practice Area: Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Court of Appeals
    Judge: Judge Doyle
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Kevin Anderson (Georgia Public Defender Council), Atlanta, for appellant.
    for defendant: Sherry Boston (DeKalb County District Attorney), Decatur; Deborah Wellborn (Assistant District Attorney), Decatur, for appellee.

    Case Number: A17A1028

    The trial court properly permitted State to introduce into evidence copies of the birth certificate and social security card found in an underage prostitute's purse when she was arrested and that evidence, along with other evidence, supported defendant's convictions for pimping a person under the age of 18, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and trafficking a person for sexual servitude.

  • Houston v. The State

    Publication Date: 2017-10-04
    Practice Area: Civil Appeals | Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Court of Appeals
    Judge: Justice Nahmias
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Thomas Houston, Waycross, for appellant.
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Paula Khristian Smith, Jason Matthew Rea, Christopher M. Carr (Department of Law), Atlanta; Julia Anne Fessenden Slater, Matthew Jon Landreau (Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit District Attorney's), Columbus; Gary Drew Bergman, Charles Alan Spahos, Sheila Ann Ross (Prosecuting Attorney's Council of Georgia), Morrow, for appellee.

    Case Number: S17A0769

    The trial court properly denied defendant's motion for an out-of-time appeal following his convictions by guilty pleas to two murders and numerous other crimes in connection with a series of home invasions because to the extent that the issues presented on appeal could be resolved by reference to the existing record, the record refuted defendant's claims.

  • Anderson v. The State

    Publication Date: 2017-10-03
    Practice Area: Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Court of Appeals
    Judge: Justice Benham
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Marcia Gail Shein, Leigh Stevens Schrope (Law Firm of Shein & Brandenburg), Decatur, for appellant.
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Paula Khristian Smith, Christopher M. Carr, Elizabeth Michelle Haase (Department of Law), Atlanta; Andrew J. Ekonomou (The Lambros Firm LLC), Atlanta; Jacquelyn Lee Johnson (Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney's Office), Woodbine, for appellee.

    Case Number: S17A0894

    The Supreme Court affirmed defendant's convictions for felony murder and other crimes after he fatally shot his daughter-in-law's boyfriend, as the evidence supported the convictions and defendant failed to prove his ineffective assistance of counsel claims.

  • Martinez v. The State

    Publication Date: 2017-10-03
    Practice Area: Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Court of Appeals
    Judge: Justice Benham
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Gregory Davis Smith (Conger & Smith LCC), Bainbridge, for appellant.
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Paula Khristian Smith, Christopher M. Carr (Department of Law), Atlanta; Michelle Thomas Harrison, Bradfield M. Shealy (Southern Judicial Circuit District Attorney's Office), Valdosta, for appellee.

    Case Number: S17A0901

    The evidence, including DNA evidence, supported defendant's convictions for rape and murder and defendant failed to prove his ineffective assistance of counsel claims.

  • Dublin v. The State

    Publication Date: 2017-10-03
    Practice Area: Criminal Law | Evidence
    Industry:
    Court: Court of Appeals
    Judge: Justice Peterson
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: James Kenneth Luttrell, Canton, for appellant.
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Paula Khristian Smith, Christopher M. Carr, Scott Orion Teague (Department of Law), Atlanta; Leigh Ellen Patterson, Emily Griffin Johnson (Floyd County District Attorney's Office), Rome, for appellee.

    Case Number: S17A0822

    The trial court did not err in permitting State to introduce certain hearsay evidence at trial, because the challenged evidence was admissible under the co-conspirator exception to the hearsay rule, and consequently, trial counsel was not deficient in failing to object to the admissible of that evidence.

  • Roscoe v. The State

    Publication Date: 2017-10-02
    Practice Area: Criminal Law | Evidence
    Industry:
    Court: Court of Appeals
    Judge: Presiding Justice Melton
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Cynthia Wright Harrison (Harrison Law Firm LLC), Atlanta, for appellant.
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Paula Khristian Smith, Elizabeth Michelle Haase, Christopher M. Carr (Department of Law), Atlanta; Paul L. Howard Jr., Kevin Christopher Armstrong, Lyndsey Hurst Rudder (Fulton County District Attorney's Office), Atlanta, for appellee.

    Case Number: S17A0718

    The evidence supported defendant's convictions for malice murder and related offenses and the trial court did not abuse its discretion in granting State's motion in limine to exclude hearsay testimony allegedly showing that someone other than defendant killed the victim.

  • Revere v. The State

    Publication Date: 2017-10-02
    Practice Area: Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Court of Appeals
    Judge: Presiding Justice Melton
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Leah Davis Madden (Davis Madden & Associates PC), Atlanta, for appellant.
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Paula Khristian Smith, Elizabeth Michelle Haase, Christopher M. Carr (Department of Law), Atlanta; Joshua Daniel Morrison, Paul L. Howard Jr., Lyndsey Hurst Rudder (Fulton County District Attorney's Office), Atlanta, for appellee.

    Case Number: S17A0806

    The defendant failed to prove his ineffective assistance of counsel claims arising out of his trial and convictions for murder and various other offenses and the Court affirmed his convictions.

  • Smith v. The State

    Publication Date: 2017-09-29
    Practice Area: Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Court of Appeals
    Judge: Judge Rickman
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Matthew Winchester (Law Offices of Matthew K. Winchester), Atlanta; Nora Benavidez (Law Office of Nora Benavidez), Atlanta, for appellant.
    for defendant: Thomas Kegley (Assistant District Attorney), Douglasville; Brian Fortner (Douglas County District Attorney), Douglasville; Sean Garrett (Douglas County District Attorney's Office), Douglasville, for appellee.

    Case Number: A17A1252

    The trial court erred in refusing to give defendant's requested jury charge on the lesser included offense of vehicular homicide in the second degree in his trial for vehicular homicide in the first degree so the Court reversed his conviction and remanded for a new trial.

  • Scott v. The State

    Publication Date: 2017-09-29
    Practice Area: Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Court of Appeals
    Judge: Justice Boggs
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Juwayn Haddad (Haddad Law Group LLC), Tucker, for appellant
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Paula Khristian Smith, Christopher M. Carr, S. Taylor Johnston (Department of Law), Atlanta; Paul L. Howard Jr., Kevin Christopher Armstrong, Lyndsey Hurst Rudder (Fulton County District Attorney's Office), Atlanta, for appellee.

    Case Number: S17A0721

    Although the evidence supported defendant's convictions for felony murder, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm in commission of a felony and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, the Court vacated his sentence and remanded for resentencing based on a merger error.

  • Mallery v. The State

    Publication Date: 2017-09-29
    Practice Area: Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Court of Appeals
    Judge: Presiding Judge Ellington
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Ruth McMullin (McMullin LLC), Stone Mountain, for appellant.
    for defendant: Sherry Boston (DeKalb County District Attorney), Decatur; Gerald Mason (DeKalb County District Attorney's Office), Decatur, for appellee.

    Case Number: A17A1048

    Defendant failed to carry his burden of proving that the trial court erred in denying his motion for a new trial on ineffective assistance of counsel grounds and the Court, therefore, affirmed his convictions for armed robbery and aggravated assault.