Jones v. The State
| Decision Date | 20 September 2010 |
| Docket Number | No. S10A0820.,S10A0820. |
| Citation | 700 S.E.2d 350,287 Ga. 770 |
| Parties | JONES v. The STATE. |
| Court | Georgia Supreme Court |
287 Ga. 770
700 S.E.2d 350
JONES
v.
The STATE.
No. S10A0820.
Supreme Court of Georgia.
Sept. 20, 2010.
Robert M. Bearden, Jr., Macon, for appellant.
Howard Z. Simms, District Attorney, Thurbert E. Baker, Attorney General, Reggie A. Lampkin, Assistant Attorney General, for appellee.
HUNSTEIN, Chief Justice.
Appellant Todd Omar Jones was convicted of murder in connection with the shooting death of Tavares Roberts. Finding no error in the denial of Jones's motion for new trial, 1 we affirm.
1. The evidence authorized the jury to find that Gregory Thompson encountered Jones at the Red Carpet Inn in Macon and Jones asked where he could purchase some drugs. Thompson got into Jones's vehicle and the two went to the Discovery Inn. There, they knocked on the door of Room 110; Takeisha Johnson answered and told them that the other occupants, Jamar Meadows and Tavares Roberts, were asleep. Jones and Thompson left but later returned, with Thompson staying in the vehicle while Jones went inside Room 110. Jones pulled a gun, demanding money and ordering Johnson, Meadows and Roberts to get on the floor. Roberts attempted to take the gun away from Jones and was shot in the ensuing scuffle, but was able to run from the room to the motel lobby. When Thompson heard gunshots coming from the room, he got out of Jones's vehicle. Jones emerged from the motel room, got in the vehicle, and drove away. Roberts later died from a gunshot wound to the neck, and a .22 caliber bullet was retrieved from his body.
Investigators obtained descriptions of Jones and his vehicle from Thompson and Johnson, and a copy of Jones's driver's license and other identifying information was obtained from his registration at the Red Carpet Inn. Jones was arrested at his residence in Athens, where clothing matching that described by the witnesses was found, as well as a box of .22 caliber target shells and used targets. Meadows identified Jones in a photo lineup.
Viewed in the light most favorable to the verdict, we conclude that the evidence adduced at trial was sufficient to enable a rational trier of fact to find Jones guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the crimes for which he was convicted. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979).
2. Jones claims that the trial court erred by failing to instruct the jury on the defenses of accident and self-defense, specifically, the use of force to prevent the forcible felonies of aggravated assault and armed robbery. Counsel for Jones requested these charges but subsequently withdrew them. Thus, Jones has waived the issue, even assuming that the charges were authorized. See Muller v. State, 284 Ga. 70(2), 663 S.E.2d 206 (2008).
As for Jones's argument that his counsel were ineffective in withdrawing the charges, trial counsel cannot be faulted for failing to request a jury charge that was not authorized by the evidence. Nix v. State, 280 Ga. 141(3)(a), 625 S.E.2d 746 (2006). “To authorize a jury instruction on a subject, there need only be produced at trial slight evidence supporting the theory of the charge. [Cit.] Whether the evidence presented is sufficient to authorize the giving of a
charge is a question of law. [Cit.]” Davis v. State, 269 Ga. 276, 279(3), 496 S.E.2d 699 (1998). Because no evidence was elicited at trial that would support a defense of accident or self-defense, trial counsel's performance was not deficient in this regard. 2
3. Jones cites as error the trial court's denial of his request to introduce the videotaped statements of witnesses Johnson and Meadows during the testimony of Lieutenant Greg Abernathy. On cross-examination of Johnson and Meadows, Jones used the transcripts of their statements for impeachment purposes. After both had been released from subpoena, Jones advised the trial court that he intended to use the videotaped statements during his cross-examination of Abernathy in an...
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