Johnson v. State
| Decision Date | 03 September 1986 |
| Docket Number | No. 43472,43472 |
| Citation | 347 S.E.2d 584,256 Ga. 259 |
| Parties | JOHNSON v. The STATE. |
| Court | Georgia Supreme Court |
J. Robert Joiner, Atlanta, for Gwendolyn Johnson.
Lewis R. Slaton, Dist. Atty., Atlanta, Richard E. Hicks, Asst. Dist. Atty., Michael J. Bowers, Atty. Gen., Dennis R. Dunn, Asst. Atty. Gen., for State.
Gwendolyn Johnson was indicted for the murder of Albert Martin by shooting and killing him with a handgun. A jury found her guilty but mentally ill, and she was sentenced to life imprisonment. 1
1. After Martin, a longtime friend, made disparaging remarks about Johnson's son (who was in jail), Johnson purchased a revolver, went to Martin's house with it, and, while they were sitting on the edge of his bed, shot him several times after he criticized her son in the course of conversation. Johnson then put the revolver in a purse and left it at a neighbor's apartment.
That evening, she called for an ambulance, and en route to the hospital she told the driver that she had shot the victim. She told the admitting physician that she had "shot the devil that day." The doctor sent her to a regional mental hospital, where she later admitted that she was responsible for the victim's death. Several days later, Johnson was given Miranda warnings and made a statement to the police admitting that she shot the victim three or four times after he had criticized her son "because he was the devil." At trial, she stated, "God took his life, I didn't."
2. At a Jackson-Denno hearing, a detective testified that at the time she made her statement to him, Johnson answered questions well, was calm, and at all times acted appropriately. She offered no evidence at the hearing. At the trial, there was expert testimony for the state that several days after the shooting Johnson was calm, in control of her actions, in contact with reality, and was not delusional. A forensic psychologist who had examined Johnson at the court's request several months after the shooting testified that, in his opinion, although Johnson had a delusion that Martin was the devil, she was not operating under a delusional compulsion at the time of the killing. A psychiatrist assigned to the jail examined Johnson eight months after the shooting and testified that it was his opinion that she did not know the difference between right and wrong, and that she was suffering from a compulsion that overmastered her will at the time of the shooting.
3. Johnson challenges the sufficiency of the evidence. The findings of the trial court as to the issues of insanity and guilt are supported by the evidence. Strozier v. State, 254 Ga. 712, 334 S.E.2d 181 (1985); Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979).
4. Johnson claims that the trial court erred in finding her competent to give a statement to the police. She claims that the statement should have been suppressed because her...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Lewis v. State
...463 S.E.2d 472 (1995) (well-settled that a mentally ill person can be competent to make a voluntary confession); Johnson v. State, 256 Ga. 259, 260(4), 347 S.E.2d 584 (1986). 49. Riley, 278 Ga. at 689(15), 604 S.E.2d 488; Dawson v. State, 274 Ga. 327, 334-335, 554 S.E.2d 137 50. OCGA § 17-1......
-
Morrow v. State
...equally well-settled that "[a] person who is mentally ill can be competent to make a voluntary confession. [Cit.]" Johnson v. State, 256 Ga. 259, 260(4), 347 S.E.2d 584 (1986). It is no less true that a mentally ill person can be competent to stand trial. Strickland v. State, 247 Ga. 219, 2......
-
Scriven v. State
...but that he was on his medication."A person who is mentally ill can be competent to make a voluntary confession." Johnson v. State , 256 Ga. 259, 260 (4), 347 S.E.2d 584 (1986). "Further, a mere showing that a person who confessed to a crime may have suffered from some mental disability is ......
-
Oldham v. State
...records that contain conclusions and opinions in addition to the test results or in lieu of the test results. See Johnson v. State, 256 Ga. 259, 260, 347 S.E.2d 584 (1986). Such opinions, conclusions and diagnoses constitute additional hearsay and unless the person whose diagnosis, conclusi......