Bannister v. Georgia

Appellant Donald Bannister was convicted of felony murder and a firearm offense in connection with the shooting death of Anthony Johnson, Jr. On appeal, he argued: (1) the weight of the evidence presented at his trial was strongly against the verdicts; (2) his trial counsel was ineffective in withdrawing a request for jury instructions on voluntary manslaughter and mutual combat; and (3) the trial court erred by denying a mistrial and giving an improper Allen charge after the jury indicated that it was deadlocked, by holding that he had not made a prima facie showing supporting his Batson challenge, and by admitting two recordings of phone calls made from jail. The Georgia Supreme Court found no reversible error, and affirmed judgment. View "Bannister v. Georgia" on Justia Law