Roberts v. State, A17A1608

• Decision Date: 25 January 2018
• Docket Number: A17A1608
• Citation: 810 S.E.2d 169
• Parties: ROBERTS v. The STATE.
• Court: Georgia Court of Appeals

344 Ga.App. 324

810 S.E.2d 169

ROBERTS

v.The STATE.

A17A1608

Court of Appeals of Georgia.

January 25, 2018

Brandon Lewis, for appellant.

Sherry Boston, District Attorney, Anna G. Cross, Jeanne M. Canavan, Assistant District Attorneys, for appellee.

Dillard, Chief Judge.

Following trial in the Superior Court of DeKalb County, a jury convicted Santee Roberts of one count of violating the Georgia Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act ("RICO"), one count of identity fraud, one count of financial-transaction-card fraud, and two counts of exploitation of an elder person. On appeal, Roberts challenges the sufficiency of the evidence supporting her convictions and further argues that the trial court erred in denying her motion to prohibit news media from taking still photographs in the courtroom during trial, admitting into evidence earlier indictments and her guilty pleas to similar crimes in the Superior Court of Fulton County, and denying her claims of ineffective assistance of counsel. For the reasons set forth infra, we affirm.

Viewed in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict,¹ the evidence shows that throughout the spring and summer of 2009, dozens of senior citizens living in DeKalb and Fulton Counties received telephone calls, in which a female claiming to be a representative of Georgia Power Company named Tonya McCloud would inform them that their utility bill had not been paid and that their power would be cut off if they did not provide her with credit card, bank account, or other personal and financial information. Many of these victims complied with the caller’s request, which then resulted in their credit cards or ATM cards being used without their permission to make purchases or obtain cash. For instance, in May 2009, 65-year-old M. C. received a phone call from a woman who claimed to be a representative of Georgia Power and informed her that her power was going to be turned off because of her failure to make payments on her bill. The caller then explained that M. C. could avoid disruption in service if she provided her credit-card information. M. C. complied, but later, she determined that she had been targeted by someone engaging in fraud. And indeed, after contacting her credit-card company, she learned that her card had been used for numerous purchases and cash advances totaling nearly $8,000.

In a similar incident, around noon on Saturday, July 4, 2009, 76-year-old E. K. was preparing food for a Fourth of July party when she received a telephone call from a woman who identified herself as Tonya McCloud, an employee with the Georgia Power Company. The caller told E. K. that her power bill had not been paid and claimed that she needed to provide personal information, checking-account information, and a credit-card account number if she wanted to avoid having her power cut off. Worried about her ill husband who would not fare well without air-conditioning, E. K. provided the information as requested. Later that evening, the purported Ms. McCloud called again and this time connected E. K. with a man who claimed to be a representative of Bank of America, confirmed that E. K.’s most recent payment to Georgia Power had not cleared, and told her that this man would assist her in making payment on the Georgia Power account if she placed a credit card in her mailbox, where it could be retrieved by a bank representative. E. K. again complied. Within a few minutes of doing so, she observed a vehicle park near her mailbox, at which point a tall male she did not recognize retrieved her credit card and left. Shortly thereafter, E. K. concluded that she had probably been the victim of a scam. Consequently, on Monday morning, she called her bank to report the incident and learned that over the weekend her credit card had been used to make purchases at several gas stations, restaurants, and grocery stores.

Later that same month, 79-year-old B. W. received a phone call and noticed that the caller identification feature on her phone indicated that the caller was "Georgia Power." When B. W. answered the phone, the caller told her that there had been a problem with her last payment for her power bill and that she would have to repay the amount due immediately to avoid having her service disrupted. The caller then instructed B. W. to place her credit card and bank ATM card in an envelope, and an employee would arrive shortly to take the envelope to the local office to make payment on her behalf. B. W. did as directed, and a short time later, a young man came to her door, asked for the envelope, and left in a vehicle that was parked on the street. That same afternoon, B. W.’s bank called to advise that her card had been used to make suspicious purchases.

All told, over the course of the spring and summer of 2009, approximately 71 victims, including 35 victims in DeKalb County, reported being targeted by the perpetrators of this Georgia Power ruse. And based on the victims’ subsequent reporting of these incidents, as early as the spring of 2009, a supervisor of security for Georgia Power and the Clayton and Fulton County Police Departments initiated investigations. These investigations eventually led them to a motel room off of Fulton Industrial Boulevard, and on April 28, 2009, officers knocked on the door of Room 159 of the motel and encountered a woman who identified herself as Nadine Simmons but claimed to not have any identification. After running the woman’s name and birth date through their computer system and determining that no such person existed, the officers again asked the woman to provide identification, and again, she claimed she could not do so. Consequently, the officers arrested the woman, and during a safety sweep of the motel room, they recovered several credit cards bearing the names of different people and an identification card that had the woman’s photograph but a different name than the one she had provided.

Following the arrest, the officers transported the woman to the local police precinct to interview her. And after conducting some research, the lead detective investigating the case determined that the woman’s true identity was Santee Roberts. But before she could be interviewed, Roberts began complaining that she felt ill and needed medical attention. Thus, the detective called emergency medical personnel, who decided to transport Roberts to the hospital for treatment. After finishing some paperwork, the detective prepared to follow the ambulance to the hospital but was stopped by a female officer, who told him that she had just been in the women’s restroom and had found dozens of credit cards and bank cards bearing various names stuffed into the toilet-seat-cover dispenser in one of the restroom’s stalls. Knowing that Roberts had been the only female arrestee allowed to use the restroom that day, the detective collected this additional evidence and proceeded to the hospital. There, Roberts confirmed her true identity, and the detective issued several citations to her, which included notice that she was to appear in court on May 20, 2009, to answer the charges. But Roberts failed to appear, and almost immediately, reports resumed from senior citizens claiming that a female Georgia Power representative had called them, requesting credit card and other financial information.

For the next few months, the detective and the Georgia Power security supervisor attempted to track down Roberts, but she proved to be elusive. Then, on August 14, 2009, 65-year-old F. S. was at her home in East Point when she received a call from a female who claimed to be a representative of her gas company and informed her that her service was going to be cut off because she had failed to pay her last bill. The caller then told F. S. that this disruption could be avoided if she provided her credit-card information over the phone. But a few minutes later, a male voice came on the line and told F. S. that the transaction had not processed and that she should put her bank card in her mailbox for a representative to retrieve. F. S. told the caller she would do as requested, but immediately after ending the call, she called her son and informed him about the incident, and he, in turn, called the police.

Not long thereafter, an officer with the East Point Police Department arrived at F. S.’s home and began interviewing her about the suspicious phone call. And while speaking with F. S. in her front yard, the officer noticed a white vehicle pull up to her mailbox. F. S. also noticed the vehicle and mentioned to the officer that it had driven by earlier and paused near her mailbox. Upon learning this, the officer immediately called for backup to block the streets leading into F. S.’s neighborhood. A few minutes later, the officer returned to his patrol car and began driving around the neighborhood looking for the white vehicle. Approximately one block over from F. S.’s home, the officer spotted the vehicle parked in the driveway of another home and saw two females walk out from behind the house. Initially, the women denied being the occupants of the vehicle. But after the homeowner came outside and told the officer that he did not know the women, they admitted that they had been in the car but claimed that a man named Steve had been driving and that he had fled after parking. In response to the officer’s questions, the women identified themselves as Tracy Jones and Joanne Brown, but their information did not match any persons in the GCIC database. Given these circumstances, the officer detained both of them for further questioning. The women were then transported to the precinct, and the officer began compiling an inventory of the contents of the vehicle, which neither woman claimed to own. While doing so, the officer observed a mobile phone on the vehicle’s back seat, which then began ringing. Picking the phone up, the officer realized that it was F. S.’s number that was calling. The officer answered the phone and...