321 Ga. 820 FINAL COPY
S25A0514. BOONE v. THE STATE.
LAGRUA, Justice.
Appellant Pereia Boone appeals his convictions for malice
murder and other crimes related to the stabbing death of Bobby
Holt.1 On appeal, Boone argues that his convictions should be
reversed based on the following contentions: (1) the evidence was
insufficient to support the verdicts in this case because the only
evidence presented against Boone was his custodial confession,
which was uncorroborated by other independent evidence at trial;
————————————————————— 1 Holt was fatally stabbed on March 18, 2019. On May 20, 2019, a Crisp
County grand jury indicted Boone and his co-defendant Katrea Williams, individually and as parties to the crime, for malice murder (Count 1), felony murder predicated on aggravated assault (Count 2), and two counts of aggravated assault (Counts 3 and 4). Boone was tried separately from May 24 to May 26, 2021, and the jury found Boone guilty on all counts. The trial court sentenced Boone to life without the possibility of parole on Count 1 (malice murder), plus 20 years to run concurrently on Count 4 (aggravated assault). The remaining counts merged or were vacated by operation of law. Boone filed a timely motion for new trial, which he later amended through new counsel on January 5, 2023, and July 28, 2024. After holding an evidentiary hearing on the motion for new trial, the trial court denied the motion on October 15, 2024. Boone filed a timely notice of appeal to this Court, and the case was docketed to the April 2025 term of this Court and submitted for a decision on the briefs. (2) the trial court abused its discretion by admitting improper other-
acts evidence for the purpose of showing Boone’s intent under OCGA
§ 24-4-404 (b); and (3) Boone’s trial counsel was constitutionally
ineffective for failing to object to statements the prosecutor made
about Boone’s character during the State’s closing argument. For
the reasons that follow, we affirm Boone’s convictions.
Viewed in the light most favorable to the verdicts, the evidence
presented at trial showed that, around 2:30 p.m. on March 18, 2019,
Eugene Bell arrived at an apartment complex in Cordele to collect
his sister’s mail, and as he approached his sister’s apartment, Bell
noticed a “male and a female” — later identified by Bell as Boone
and Katrea Williams — leaving Holt’s apartment, which was located
next door. Williams suddenly “grabbed” Bell and “wouldn’t turn
loose” for “[a]t least five to ten minutes,” even when Bell tried “to
pull her off.” Williams eventually let go, and she and Boone walked
“around the corner [of] the complex,” “arguing.”
Lissa Faircloth, who worked in a Housing Authority facility
located adjacent to the apartment complex, testified that she
2 witnessed the incident between Boone, Williams, and Bell through
her office window. According to Faircloth, she saw “[t]wo individuals
[who] appear[ed] to be fighting, and another person trying to break
them up,” and she called 911 to report the altercation. Officer
Kimberly Mason with the Cordele Police Department responded to
Faircloth’s 911 call. According to Officer Mason, she arrived at the
apartment complex around 3:00 p.m., and she saw “a male subject
pulling a female” — whom she later determined to be Boone and
Williams — “across the road.” Williams was “initially on the ground”
and was not wearing any shoes. Officer Mason testified that she
believed she was “witnessing a domestic [disturbance],” so she
“activated [her] lights, which also turned on [her] body camera,”2 and
she “immediately detained” Boone. As Officer Mason was
handcuffing Boone, Boone repeatedly said that Williams, who was
standing in front of Officer Mason’s patrol car, “robbed and helped
kill him. She robbed and helped kill him.” Officer Mason removed
————————————————————— 2 Officer Mason’s bodycam footage was admitted without objection at
trial and played for the jury.
3 part of a hacksaw blade from Boone’s pocket before placing him in
the back seat of her patrol car.
Officer Michael Middleton with the Cordele Police Department
also responded to Faircloth’s 911 call that afternoon and arrived on
the scene shortly after Officer Mason. Because Officer Mason was
involved with Boone at the time, Officer Middleton “made contact
with the female,” Williams. After Officer Middleton spoke with
Williams and learned that an incident had occurred at Holt’s
apartment, Officer Middleton “escorted” Williams back to Holt’s
residence by placing her “in the back seat of [his] patrol car” and
following her directions to Holt’s apartment. When they arrived at
the complex, Williams “walked [Officer Middleton] up to [Holt’s]
apartment.” Officer Middleton observed that the screen door to the
apartment was closed, but the “main door” was “cracked open.”
Officer Middleton looked inside the apartment and “saw a male
subject leaning against a piece of furniture, sitting on the floor, with
a box cutter sticking out of his neck.” Officer Mason testified that
she also went to Holt’s apartment and looked inside, and when she
4 did so, she saw Holt, who appeared to be deceased, “sitting on the
floor, leaned up against the couch, with [ ] what appeared to be a box
cutter sticking out of . . . the front of his neck.” Neither Officer Mason
nor Officer Middleton entered Holt’s apartment. Following the
officers’ viewing of the interior of the apartment, Officer Middleton
detained Williams.
Sarah McGee, who lived in an apartment across from Holt’s,
testified that she saw Williams approaching Holt’s apartment on the
afternoon of March 18,3 and a short time later, she heard a
“commotion” coming from Holt’s apartment, including “a lot of
cussing and going on, and bad words.” McGee testified that she
heard Williams tell Holt that he “wasn’t going no damn where.”
GBI Special Agent David Smith, who was admitted as an
expert in crime scene analysis and blood-stain pattern analysis at
trial, testified that he and another GBI agent processed Holt’s
————————————————————— 3 McGee testified that Williams frequently came over to Holt’s apartment
and “stay[ed] the night”; had “sex in his house” with “different men” while Holt was away; and “stole [Holt’s] money and his food and sold it.” Holt’s niece, Mary, also testified that Williams was often at Holt’s apartment and took Holt’s money “to support her [drug] habit.” 5 apartment on March 18. Agent Smith testified that, upon entering
the apartment, they found Holt’s body positioned on the floor of the
living area, leaning back against a loveseat. Paramedics with Crisp
County Emergency Medical Services pronounced Holt dead at the
scene. Agent Smith testified that he observed a “box cutter” or “razor
knife” sticking out of Holt’s neck. Agent Smith also observed “sharp
force trauma injuries” on Holt’s neck, head, arms, and hands where
Holt had been “cut or stabbed.” In “the middle of the loveseat”
directly behind Holt, Agent Smith noted the presence of a “large
bloodstain,” indicating a significant “bloodletting event” occurred
there, as well as blood “spatter stains” on various surfaces around
the living area of the apartment. On the loveseat behind Holt’s body,
Agent Smith found a single earring, and he collected part of “a
hacksaw blade that had blood on it.” Agent Smith also collected a
black wig with bloodstains on it on the floor next to Holt’s body, as
well as a shoe near the front door that had “shards of glass”
embedded “in the bottom of it.” In the kitchen, Agent Smith noted “a
significant quantity of broken glass and the neck to a liquor bottle
6 still in the corner.” In the bedroom, Agent Smith located “the
matching shoe” to the one recovered by the front door, a “dark green
Under Armour hoodie,” and a “white tee shirt.” Several stains Agent
Smith observed on the hoodie and tee shirt were submitted for
“presumptive blood testing” and “tested positive for blood.” The
Under Armour hoodie was later determined to belong to Boone.
On the evening of March 18, Agent Smith met with Williams
at the Cordele Police Department and photographed her, at which
point he noticed she was wearing only one earring “similar” to the
earring he “collected at the scene” on the loveseat behind Holt. Agent
Smith also noted that Williams had a cut on one of her left fingers
and “a small transfer bloodstain on the cuff of her left sleeve of her
shirt.” As for Boone, Agent Smith photographed the clothing Boone
was wearing at the time of his arrest, and Agent Smith testified that
Boone’s blue jeans had observable bloodstains on “the left knee,”
which later “tested positive” for blood.
The medical examiner testified that, during Holt’s autopsy, she
observed “five sharp force injuries” to Holt’s neck, four of which were
7 stab wounds approximately two to three inches in length. In one of
the four stab wounds, the medical examiner “recovered a piece of a
blade of a sharp force object” that was “consistent with” a “utility
knife,” which had apparently “broke[n] off into this wound and
embedded itself into the ligament, the bone, and a muscle.” The fifth
neck wound was “an incised wound” or “slashing type” of wound,
part of which was a “little jagged,” and was “consistent with” the
hacksaw blade recovered by law enforcement at the scene.
Additionally, the medical examiner observed that Holt had “blunt
force injuries” on “the back of his right scalp area,” which would have
“been consistent with being hit with a glass bottle.” According to the
medical examiner, Holt’s cause of death was “multiple sharp force
injuries,” and although she could not determine which of the wounds
in Holt’s neck came first, she testified that three of those wounds
“would have been fatal.”
On the evening of March 18, after being advised of and waiving
his Miranda4 rights, Boone was interviewed by two GBI agents,
————————————————————— 4 See Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U. S. 436 (86 SCt 1602, 16 LE2d 694)
8 Agent Andrew Albertson and Agent Clint Karsten, while Boone was
in custody at the Cordele Police Department. During that custodial
interview, which was video-recorded, Boone admitted to and
described his involvement in Holt’s death, as well as explained his
personal history with Holt and Williams. Boone also wrote a
statement in which he apologized to Holt’s family for Holt’s murder.5
According to the statements Boone made during his March 18
custodial interview, Boone moved to Cordele in June 2018, and
shortly afterward, he “got involved with” Williams, whom he
described as “on drugs real bad,” a “compulsive liar,” and “crazy.”
Boone stated that, a few months after he became romantically
————————————————————— (1966). 5 Prior to trial, the State provided notice of its intent to introduce Boone’s
video-recorded custodial interview and written statement at trial, which Boone then moved to suppress. The trial court held a Jackson-Denno hearing on May 19, 2021. See Jackson v. Denno, 378 U. S. 368 (84 SCt 1774, 12 LE2d 908) (1964). On May 21, 2021, the trial court issued an order denying Boone’s motion to suppress, concluding that Boone’s custodial statements were freely and voluntarily made to law enforcement and that his interview and written statement were admissible at trial. At trial, Boone’s March 18 custodial interview — with several stipulated redactions — was admitted into evidence during the testimony of Agent Albertson and played for the jury. Boone’s written statement, as well as a diagram he drew of the interior of Holt’s apartment during the March 18 interview, were also admitted at trial. 9 involved with Williams, he met Holt at Holt’s apartment when he
accompanied Williams there. Boone said Williams would frequently
“hang over” at Holt’s apartment to “turn tricks” and “do drugs,”6 and
she had also “stolen money” from Holt to buy drugs. Boone said he
knew Holt was also romantically involved with Williams “off and
on,” and although he and Holt “shared a woman,” Boone and Holt
were friends.
According to Boone, in mid-March 2019, Boone started staying
at Holt’s apartment because Boone was homeless and “had nowhere
else to go.” On the morning of March 18, Holt left the apartment for
a while, and when he returned, he told Boone he had seen Williams
while he was out. Holt apparently told Williams he had gotten some
money so she would come over to the apartment.7 As Boone
described what happened next, he gave the GBI agents several
differing accounts. In his final account, Boone stated that, while Holt
————————————————————— 6 Boone explained that Williams would “turn tricks” in exchange for drugs or to earn drug money, and Holt would sometimes let her use his apartment for that purpose. 7 Boone told the GBI agents that Williams came over to Holt’s apartment
whenever she thought Holt had money. 10 was away from the apartment that morning, Williams came over
and told Boone about Holt’s money. Williams told Boone they were
“going to rob” Holt and use the money to go to Knoxville, and she
needed Boone to “hold him.” Williams planned to “knock Holt out
and take the money.” Boone said he and Williams then had sex, and
she left with a plan to return that afternoon around 1:00 or 2:00 p.m.
According to Boone, around 2:15 p.m. on March 18, Williams
returned to Holt’s apartment and demanded money from Holt.
Boone said that, when Holt told Williams he did not have any
money, Williams got angry. Holt went into the kitchen; Williams
followed and hit Holt over the head with a “tall liquor bottle.” Boone
said that Holt “stumbled” into the living room and “fell on the sofa
chair.” Boone said it was apparent Williams had failed to “knock
[Holt] out” with the liquor bottle as she planned, and “that’s when
things went south.” Boone said Williams “grabbed a carpenter knife”
— he also described it as a box cutter — and started stabbing Holt.
Holt “was still breathing” and trying to get up, so Boone “stabbed
him, too.” Boone pulled the knife out, “wiped the blade” on
11 Williams’s “hair, her wig,” and stabbed Holt again. Boone indicated
that, as he was stabbing Holt, the blade broke off in Holt’s neck. At
this point, Holt was still breathing, so Williams put a pillow over
Holt’s mouth while Boone kneeled on Holt and held his arms down
until he “didn’t breathe no more.” Boone admitted that he owned and
had used a hacksaw blade to stab Holt — part of which was found
in Boone’s pocket when he was arrested and part of which was found
on the loveseat behind Holt.
Boone said that, after they stabbed Holt, Williams quickly
changed clothes and ran out of the apartment without her shoes.
Boone kept on the same clothes — except for his Under Armour
hoodie — because they were all he had. Boone stated that, when
Williams ran out of the apartment, he was concerned she would run
away and blame him for everything, so he followed her. Boone said
he was not going to let Williams leave his side because “[i]f [he] was
go[ing] down, [she was] going down, too.” When Boone and Williams
got outside, they encountered a “dude” — later identified as Bell —
whom Williams grabbed, “acting crazy.” Boone explained that he
12 wanted to get Williams away from the “dude” and also prevent her
from leaving and letting Boone be held “responsible for murder,”
which was why he was dragging Williams and holding onto her.
1. Boone first contends that the evidence in this case was
insufficient as a matter of constitutional due process to convict him
of the crimes charged under Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U. S. 307, 319
(III) (B) (99 SCt 2781, 61 LE2d 560) (1979). Boone also argues that,
as a matter of Georgia statutory law, the evidence was “insufficient
to support the verdict” under OCGA § 24-8-823 because “the only
evidence of guilt” was Boone’s “uncorroborated oral and written
statements.” These claims fail.
When we review the “constitutional sufficiency of the
evidence,” we review the “evidence at trial in the light most
favorable to the verdicts to determine whether a rational trier of fact
could have found the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt,
without weighing the evidence or resolving conflicts in testimony.”
Hooks v. State, 318 Ga. 850, 852 (2) (a) (901 SE2d 166) (2024). And,
“[w]e defer to the jury’s resolution of any conflicts in the evidence,
13 the credibility of witnesses, and the drawing of reasonable
inferences from the facts.” Id. See also Ridley v. State, 315 Ga. 452,
455 (2) (883 SE2d 357) (2023) (“In making this determination, we do
not evaluate witness credibility, resolve inconsistencies in the
evidence, or assess the weight of the evidence; these tasks are left to
the sole discretion of the jury.”).
Here, the evidence was sufficient as a matter of constitutional
due process for the jury to find Boone guilty of the murder and
aggravated assault of Holt. See Ridley, 315 Ga. at 455 (2). That
evidence established that, on the afternoon of March 18, Boone was
observed by several witnesses outside of Holt’s apartment, and when
Boone was detained shortly thereafter, he repeatedly told the
arresting officer that Williams, who was standing nearby, “robbed
and helped kill him.” At that time, Boone had blood on his clothing
and was carrying part of a hacksaw blade — another piece of which
was found at the crime scene and was consistent with causing one
of Holt’s stab wounds. Additionally, during Boone’s custodial
interview with law enforcement later that evening, Boone described
14 the crime scene and Holt’s death in detail, as well as admitted to an
ongoing romantic relationship with Williams, his involvement in
planning the attack on Holt, and his role in holding Holt down and
stabbing him to death.
Moreover, Boone was charged individually and as a party to
the murder and aggravated assault of Holt, and we have said
that “[a] defendant is guilty as a party to a crime if he ‘(i)ntentionally
aids or abets’” in the commission of the crime. Goodman v. State, 313
Ga. 762, 767 (2) (a) (873 SE2d 150) (2022) (quoting OCGA § 16-2-20
(b) (3)). And, although “mere presence at the scene of a crime is not
sufficient evidence to convict one of being a party to a crime, criminal
intent may be inferred from presence, companionship, and conduct
before, during and after the offense.” Id. (citation and punctuation
omitted). In this case, the evidence — construed in the light “most
favorabl[e] to the verdicts” — was sufficient to demonstrate that
Boone “was more than merely present” for the murder and
aggravated assault of Holt and to authorize the jury to find Boone
guilty of these crimes. Id.
15 With respect to Boone’s statutory claim that “[t]he evidence
was insufficient to support the verdict because the only evidence
against [Boone] was a confession that was uncorroborated by the
evidence,” we note that, under OCGA § 24-8-823, “[a] confession
alone, uncorroborated by any other evidence will not justify a
conviction.” See Norman v. State, 298 Ga. 344, 346 (2) (a) (781 SE2d
784) (2016) (holding that “a defendant’s entirely uncorroborated
confession cannot support a conviction”). However, we have held
that, “[f]or a confession to be sufficiently supported, [ ] other
evidence need only corroborate it in any particular.” Id.
[W]hen the jury finds that a confession is corroborated, it need not find proof of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt from evidence separate from and wholly independent of the confession, and it instead may consider the confession along with other facts and circumstances independent of and separate from it.
Id. (citation and punctuation omitted).
“In this case, the State presented evidence corroborating”
Boone’s “confession in many particulars.” Norman, 298 Ga. at 346
(2) (a). As discussed above, (1) several witnesses saw Boone near
16 Holt’s apartment after his murder; (2) Boone told the arresting
officer that Williams “helped kill him,” later making clear that
Boone was referencing Holt; (3) Boone had blood on his clothes and
part of a hacksaw blade in his pocket at the time of his arrest; and
(4) the other part of the hacksaw blade was found next to Holt’s body
at the crime scene. In addition, the “[p]hysical evidence found at the
crime scene and testimony from the medical examiner corroborated”
Boone’s statements “about the manner in which” he and Williams
assaulted and killed Holt. Id. “This corroboration was more than
sufficient.” Id.
Accordingly, we conclude that the evidence was
constitutionally and statutorily sufficient to sustain the jury’s
verdicts against Boone for malice murder and aggravated assault.
2. Boone next contends that the trial court erroneously
admitted evidence of a statement Boone made to a detention officer
during his pretrial incarceration under OCGA § 24-4-404 (b) (“Rule
404 (b)”). While awaiting trial, Boone was incarcerated, and during
his incarceration, he had an encounter with a detention officer,
17 during which Boone said — after the officer refused his request to
pass a note to another inmate — “B***h, I am in here for murder,
and I’ll kill you, too.” Prior to trial, the State provided notice to
Boone of its intent to introduce evidence of this statement at trial
under Rule 404 (b). Following a hearing, the trial court ruled that
the statement would be admissible at trial on several grounds,
including as intrinsic evidence, as a party admission, and as proof of
Boone’s intent under Rule 404 (b). Boone’s statement to the
detention officer was then admitted at trial over Boone’s objection,
which did not include an objection on hearsay grounds. See OCGA §
24-8-801 (d) (2) (A) (providing that “[a]dmissions shall not be
excluded by the hearsay rule”).
On appeal, Boone contends only that the trial court abused its
discretion in admitting his statement to the detention officer for the
purpose of showing his intent under Rule 404 (b). But, in light of the
overwhelming evidence of Boone’s guilt recounted in our sufficiency
analysis above — including his own admission to law enforcement
that he assisted in planning the attack on Holt and that he stabbed
18 Holt to death — we need not decide whether the trial court erred in
admitting Boone’s statement under Rule 404 (b) “because any error
was harmless.” Ware v. State, 303 Ga. 847, 852 (IV) (815 SE2d 837)
(2018). See also Parks v. State, 300 Ga. 303, 308 (2) (794 SE2d 623)
(2016) (concluding that “overwhelming” evidence of guilt rendered
any erroneous admission of Rule 404 (b) evidence harmless,
particularly where the defendant admitted that he shot victim).
“In determining whether the error was harmless, we review the
record de novo and weigh the evidence as we would expect
reasonable jurors to have done[.] The test for determining
nonconstitutional harmless error is whether it is highly probable
that the error did not contribute to the verdict.” Kitchens v. State,
310 Ga. 698, 702 (2) (854 SE2d 518) (2021) (citation and punctuation
omitted). Given the overwhelming evidence of Boone’s guilt in this
case, see Division 1, it is “highly probable” that the evidence
presented about Boone’s statement — which consisted solely of brief
testimony from the detention officer to whom Boone made the
statement and from another detention officer who overheard it —
19 “did not contribute to the verdict” and, thus, was harmless. Id.
(citation and punctuation omitted). Accordingly, this contention also
fails.
3. Boone last contends that his trial counsel was
constitutionally ineffective for failing to object to statements the
prosecutor made about Boone’s character during the State’s closing
argument. This claim also fails under the standard set forth in
Strickland v. Washington, 466 U. S. 668, 687 (III) (104 SCt 2052, 80
LE2d 674) (1984).
To prevail on a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, a defendant generally must show that counsel’s performance was deficient and that the deficient performance resulted in prejudice to the defendant. To satisfy the deficiency prong, a defendant must demonstrate that his attorney performed at trial in an objectively unreasonable way considering all the circumstances and in the light of prevailing professional norms. To satisfy the prejudice prong, a defendant must establish a reasonable probability that, in the absence of counsel’s deficient performance, the result of the trial would have been different. If an appellant fails to meet his or her burden of proving either prong of the Strickland test, the reviewing court does not have to examine the other prong.
Moss v. State, 311 Ga. 123, 126 (2) (856 SE2d 280) (2021) (citations
20 and punctuation omitted) (citing Strickland, 466 U. S. at 687-695).
During Boone’s closing argument, his trial counsel told the jury
there was “no forensic evidence linking [ ] Boone to these offenses”
and that Williams was solely “responsible for this.” Boone’s trial
counsel argued that Williams was “high on crack cocaine” that day;
“[s]he realized there wasn’t any money”; and “she lost it.” Trial
counsel explained that Boone was “attempting to downplay her role
and his role, or however you want to see it, because he had a
relationship with her. He was torn.”
During the State’s closing argument, the prosecutor told the
jury that he “expect[ed] the judge to instruct [the jury] on party to
the crime,” and then, the prosecutor said,
and let’s get one thing straight. [Boone’s trial counsel] and I agree on this. Katrea Williams is not a good person. I’m not up here before you to tell you that she is. She is not a good person. She is a murderer just like this defendant. . . . [T]he defense attorney and the defendant want to make you think, oh well you know what, she is a — and I’ll apologize for the term, but she is a crack whore. That’s what they — who is the crack whore’s boyfriend? Who chooses to be with the crack whore? That’s this defendant.
At Boone’s motion-for-new-trial hearing, his trial counsel
21 testified that he did not object to the prosecutor’s comment during
the State’s closing argument because he did not want to “draw more
attention to it.” Additionally, Boone’s trial counsel explained that
Boone’s “whole theory was that [ ] Williams was the one that
committed it. So, anything . . . [that] reflected badly on her, . . . it
didn’t really affect [Boone’s] position.” Trial counsel testified that he
understood “they’re saying that [Boone] was the boyfriend of her,
but that was just more of why he was trying to cover for [her].”
Boone’s trial counsel acknowledged that the State did not call Boone
“a crack whore,” and Williams was, in fact, Boone’s girlfriend, with
whom he “chose” to be “involved.” Trial counsel pointed out that this
argument helped Boone’s theory that he was “just merely present at
the scene of the crime”; he “did not actually participate in the
murder of Mr. Holt”; and “Miss Williams did all of it by herself.”
Boone was just “covering for her.”
In the trial court’s order denying Boone’s motion for new trial,
the trial court found that “[t]rial counsel’s decision to not object to
the statements was a strategic choice and not deficient
22 performance.” The trial court further determined that Boone failed
to show “how this strategic choice by trial counsel was ‘patently
unreasonable.’” We agree.
We have said that “[a] closing argument is to be judged in the
context in which it is made.” Styles v. State, 309 Ga. 463, 470 (4) (847
SE2d 325) (2020) (citation and punctuation omitted).
A prosecutor is granted wide latitude in the conduct of closing argument, and within that wide latitude, a prosecutor may comment upon and draw deductions from the evidence presented to the jury. Whether to object to a particular part of a prosecutor’s closing argument is a tactical decision, and counsel’s decision not to make an objection must be patently unreasonable to rise to the level of deficient performance.
Nesbit v. State, 321 Ga. 240, 250 (913 SE2d 650) (2025) (citations
and punctuation omitted).
To establish that his trial counsel performed deficiently, Boone
must show that, “under the circumstances, the challenged action
cannot be considered a sound trial strategy.” Zayas v. State, 319 Ga.
402, 411 (3) (902 SE2d 583) (2024) (citation and punctuation
omitted). “[E]lecting not to object to a closing argument that is not
23 unduly prejudicial or clearly improper to avoid drawing negative
attention to the defendant or highlighting unfavorable evidence is a
reasonable trial strategy.” Nesbit, 321 Ga. at 251. See also Young v.
State, 305 Ga. 92, 97-98 (5) (823 SE2d 774) (2019) (concluding that
trial counsel’s strategy of weighing the “upside of arguably
objectionable [comments]” against “its downside” and ultimately
deciding not to object to avoid drawing negative attention to the
defendant was reasonable).
Under the circumstances presented in this case, we conclude
that Boone failed to meet his burden of showing that his trial counsel
was constitutionally deficient under Strickland for failing to object
to the State’s comment during closing argument because, as the
record reflects, his trial counsel’s decision not to object to the State’s
comment on the basis that it helped Boone’s theory that he was
merely present at the scene and was only covering for Williams was
a reasonable one. See Young, 305 Ga. at 97-98 (5). Therefore, this
ineffective assistance of counsel claim fails.
Judgment affirmed. Peterson, C. J., Warren, P. J., and Bethel,
24 Ellington, McMillian, Colvin, and Pinson, JJ., concur.
Decided June 10, 2025.
Murder. Crisp Superior Court. Before Judge Fachini.
Shantay D. Hightower, for appellant.
Bradford L. Rigby, District Attorney; Christopher M. Carr,
Attorney General, Beth A. Burton, Deputy Attorney General, Clint C.
Malcolm, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Eric C. Peters,
Assistant Attorney General, for appellee.