Justia Constitutional Law Opinion Summaries

Following a bench trial, Labaron Curry appealed his convictions for two counts of felony murder and two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, contending that the evidence was insufficient to support the verdict. Finding that the evidence in this case, including Curry’s admission, was sufficient to enable a jury to determine that Curry was guilty of the crimes for which he was convicted beyond a reasonable doubt, the Supreme Court affirmed. View "Curry v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Appellant Robert Merrill Smith was convicted of the malice murder of his wife Jennifer, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. On appeal he challenged the sufficiency of the evidence, the content of the jury instructions, the trial court’s refusal to admit evidence of the victim’s purported acts of violence against third parties, and contended he received ineffective assistance of counsel. Upon review, the Supreme Court concluded that all of appellant's contentions of error were without merit and that the trial court did not err in finding that ineffective assistance of counsel had not been proven. View "Smith v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Chaudhry Rashid appealed his conviction for malice murder in connection with the strangulation death of his daughter, Sandeela Kanwal. Rashid challenged the sufficiency of the evidence of his guilt, grants of immunity to members of his family, the admission into evidence of a videotaped conversation between himself and his family, the use of a transcript of the videotape, and aspects of the trial court’s instructions to the jury. Finding the challenges to be without merit, the Supreme Court affirmed. View "Rashid v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Montay Lee Merritt was tried by a jury and convicted of the murder of his wife. Following the denial of his motion for new trial, Merritt appealed, contending that the evidence was insufficient to sustain his conviction and that the trial court erred when it failed to charge the jury on voluntary manslaughter as a lesser included offense. Upon review of the briefs and record, the Supreme Court found no error, and affirmed. View "Merritt v. Georgia" on Justia Law

A jury convicted Herman Lewis Bright of malice murder and aggravated assault in connection with the death of Jerome Jenkins. On appeal, Bright contended that the evidence was insufficient to convict him and his trial counsel was ineffective. Finding no error, the Supreme Court affirmed. View "Bright v. Georgia" on Justia Law

A jury convicted Jeffrey Bunnell of malice murder and tampering with the evidence in connection with the beating death of 70-year-old Margie Eason. On appeal, Bunnell challenged the trial court's rulings admitting into evidence his videotaped statement to police, the hearsay testimony of three witnesses, testimony about a suspension for driving under the influence, and post-autopsy photographs. Because the trial court did not err in its evidentiary rulings, the Supreme Court affirmed. View "Bunnell v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Elkin Clarke appealed his convictions for the malice murder of Michael Toles and the simple assault of Aisha Albritton. He challenged the sufficiency of the evidence and the trial court's refusal to remove a potential juror for cause. Upon review, the Supreme Court found that although "Juror 21" initially expressed some reservation about her impartiality, she ultimately confirmed that she did not want any emotionality to impede her judgment, and that she was a fair person. Under these facts, the Supreme Court concluded there was no manifest abuse of the trial court's discretion in not excusing the juror for cause. View "Clarke v. Georgia" on Justia Law

During his murder trial in March 2011, appellant Corey Dennis withdrew his plea of not guilty and plead guilty to the felony murders of Jerry Lee Lawrence and Harold Reese, Jr., to two counts of kidnaping with bodily injury, to the armed robbery of Reese and to arson of Reese's property, to two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, and to one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. His plea was accepted and the trial court imposed four sentences of life imprisonment, to be served concurrently, followed by sentences totaling thirty years, to be served consecutively to the sentences of life imprisonment. In July 2012, appellant filed an out-of-time appeal which the trial court denied after finding that appellant had not established his entitlement to an out-of-time appeal. Appellant then filed this appeal. Upon review, the Supreme Court concluded the trial court's finding that appellant did not establish entitlement to an out-of-time appeal was correct, and that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying appellant's motion for out-of-time appeal. View "Dennis v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Appellant Phillip Chad Dunn was convicted and sentenced for the malice murder of his wife, Shelley Dyan Dunn, and two counts of child cruelty in the third degree. On appeal, appellant contended the trial court erred in admitting evidence of his 2011 conviction for the aggravated assault and aggravated battery of his wife, and in refusing to admit evidence of the victim's blood alcohol level at the time of her death. Finding no error, the Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of conviction. View "Dunn v. Georgia" on Justia Law

Jesse Lamar Arnold was tried by jury and convicted of the aggravated stalking and aggravated assault of his estranged wife, Lakeisha, and the murder of Eric Mattox. Arnold appealed, contending that he was deprived of the effective assistance of counsel because he alleged his lawyer did not adequately investigate his mental health in her preparation for trial. Finding no merit in this contention, the Supreme Court affirmed the trial court's judgment. View "Arnold v. Georgia" on Justia Law