Grier v. State

828 S.E.2d 304, 305 Ga. 882
CourtSupreme Court of Georgia
DecidedMay 20, 2019
DocketS19A0634
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 828 S.E.2d 304 (Grier v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Grier v. State, 828 S.E.2d 304, 305 Ga. 882 (Ga. 2019).

Opinion

MELTON, Chief Justice.

**882Following a jury trial, Lamaris Grier appeals his convictions for two murders and related crimes, contending that the evidence was insufficient to support the verdict, trial counsel was ineffective for failing to object to improper testimony and closing argument, and the prosecutor engaged in misconduct.1 For the reasons set forth below, we affirm.

1. In the light most favorable to the verdict, the record shows that, on October 4, 2013, Grier shot and killed Jerry Grier (Jerry)2 and Jamanius Mills at Jerry's DeKalb County residence. Around 8:30 a.m. that morning, Jerry's girlfriend, Shaquila Bryant, stopped by Jerry's **883house and saw Grier sitting on the couch inside Jerry's room. About two hours later, Jerry's friend, Ty Tukes, stopped by to purchase some marijuana from Jerry at the same time that Mills was walking up to the house. When Tukes and Mills entered the house, Grier and Jerry were on the couch in Jerry's room playing a video game, and there was a bundle of cash on the TV stand. Tukes asked if the men were betting, and Grier said they were and that he was losing. Jerry was known to be very good at video games and would often bet with others on the outcome of the games. After talking to the men briefly about the game, Tukes purchased marijuana from Jerry, and left the house around 10:45 a.m. Some time shortly after Tukes left, Grier called his friend Darius Gibson, who was in a car with Deonte McDowell, and told Gibson not to come by Jerry's house because he had "just offed them boys." Gibson, assuming that Grier was kidding, brushed off the comment, and he and McDowell stuck with their original plan and drove to Jerry's house to smoke marijuana. When Gibson and McDowell arrived at Jerry's house, the screen door was open, but the front door was locked, so the two men left. *307Police were called to the scene around 6:30 p.m. that evening when Jerry's younger sister discovered Jerry's and Mills's dead bodies. Both men were shot twice and died of gunshot wounds to the head. The police recovered four cartridge casings and two bullet fragments consistent with being fired from a Glock .40-caliber handgun.3 The police also observed that Jerry's and Mills's pants pockets were turned inside out, and there were no signs of forced entry into the house.

Both Tukes and Bryant testified that, when they saw Grier's face on the news as a suspect in relation to the murders, they recognized him as the person sitting on the couch with Jerry on the morning of the shooting. They also confirmed that Grier was the only other person at the house with Jerry and Mills that morning. Gibson also testified that he saw Grier's car in Jerry's driveway earlier that morning, but when he came back by the house shortly before noon, Grier's car was gone. Gibson added that it was odd that Grier would be at Jerry's without him or McDowell, because Grier was not especially close with Jerry. Further, cell phone evidence established Grier's presence in the area where the shooting occurred between 8:31 a.m. and 10:54 a.m. on October 4, 2013.

Grier contends that there was insufficient evidence to convict him of the crimes for which he was found guilty. We disagree and find **884the evidence presented at trial was sufficient to enable the jury to find Grier guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the crimes given Grier's admission that he "offed" the victims, cell phone location evidence corroborating his admission, Grier's presence alone with the victims shortly before they were killed, and evidence that Grier possessed a handgun of the same caliber used to shoot the victims. Jackson v. Virginia , 443 U. S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979). See also Rampley v. State , 235 Ga. 101, 218 S.E.2d 838 (1975) (defendant's conviction was supported by sufficient evidence, including defendant's confession that he struck the child); Worthem v. State , 270 Ga. 469, 509 S.E.2d 922 (1999) (defendant's conviction was based on sufficient evidence where his conviction was not premised solely upon his in-custody confession, but there was sufficient evidence to corroborate his confession to the police).

2. Grier contends that trial counsel was ineffective in failing to object to certain testimony by witnesses regarding the ultimate issue of guilt and failing to object to a comment referring to evidence admitted under OCGA § 24-4-404 (b) ("Rule 404 (b)") during the State's closing argument. To prevail on these ineffective assistance claims, Grier has the burden of proving

[t]hat the performance of his lawyer was professionally deficient and that he was prejudiced as a result. See Strickland v. Washington , 466 U. S. 668, 687, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984). To prove deficient performance, [Grier] must show that his trial counsel acted or failed to act in an objectively unreasonable way, considering all of the circumstances and in light of prevailing professional norms. See Lupoe v. State , 300 Ga. 233, 239-240, 794 S.E.2d 67 (2016). To prove resulting prejudice, [Grier] must show a reasonable probability that, but for [trial] counsel's deficiency, the result of the trial would have been different. Id. at 240 [794 S.E.2d 67].

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828 S.E.2d 304, 305 Ga. 882, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/grier-v-state-ga-2019.