Smith v. State, s. 30205

• Decision Date: 06 January 1976
• Docket Number: Nos. 30205,30268,s. 30205
• Citation: 236 Ga. 12,222 S.E.2d 308
• Parties: John Eldon SMITH a/k/a Anthony Isalldo Machetti, etc. v. The STATE. Rebecca Akins SMITH a/k/a Rebecca Akins Machetti, etc. v. The STATE.
• Court: Georgia Supreme Court

Page 308

222 S.E.2d 308

236 Ga. 12

John Eldon SMITH a/k/a Anthony Isalldo Machetti, etc. v. The STATE.

Rebecca Akins SMITH a/k/a Rebecca Akins Machetti, etc. v. The STATE.

Nos. 30205, 30268.

Supreme Court of Georgia.

Jan. 6, 1976.

Rehearing Denied Jan. 27, 1976.

Byrd, Groover & Buford, Floyd M. Buford, Macon, for appellant in 30205.

Vane G. Hawkins, Athens, for appellant in 30268.

Fred M. Hasty, Dist. Atty., W. Donald Thompson, 1st Asst. Dist. Atty., Macon, Arthur K. Bolton, Atty. Gen., Lois F. Oakley, Asst. Atty. Gen., Atlanta, for appellee.

JORDAN, Justice.

Appellants, husband and wife, were charged in two counts with the murder of Joseph Ronald Akins and his wife Juanita Knight Akins. At separate trials both were convicted and sentenced to death on each count. With monor exceptions, the enumerated errors are common to both cases. The cases were consolidated on appeal and will be thus treated.

Joseph Ronald Akins and his wife of twenty days, Juanita Knight Akins, were killed in a secluded area of a new housing development in Bibb County, Georgia on August 31, 1974, by shotgun blasts fired at close range.

According to the state's evidence, Joseph Akins' former wife, appellant Rebecca Akins Smith Machetti, together with her husband, appellant John Eldon Smith, a/k/a Anthony Isalldo Machetti, a/k/a Tony Machetti, and John Maree plotted the death of Joseph Akins with the intent of redeeming the proceeds of Akins' insurance policies, and other benefits, the beneficiaries of which were Mrs. Machetti and her three daughters by her marriage to Akins. They were living in North Miami Beach, Florida at the time. According to the testimony of accomplice John Maree, he was to be paid $1,000 for his participation. He testified that he and the appellant Tony Machetti drove to Macon, Georgia where they contached Ronald Akins and lured him into the area of the crime, ostensibly to install a television antenna, and that when he and his wife arrived at the appointed time the appellant Tony Machetti killed both of them with a shotgun, after which he and Maree returned to North Miami Beach, Florida.

I. ENUMERATIONS OF ERROR

1. In enumeration one appellants allege that the testimony of the accomplice, John Maree, was not corroborated in that there was no independent evidence which connected them with the alleged crimes, or the commission thereof.

As to appellant Tony Machetti, independent evidence established that John Maree's palm print appeared on the left front door of the automobile of the victim Ronald of the automobile of the victim Ronald were found. This appellant insisted in two separate interviews with Florida police officers that he was with John Maree throughout the weekend on a fishing trip or business trip. The weekend included August 31, 1974, on which date at 5:15 a.m. the killings occurred.

Independent testimony from another witness established that appellant Tony Machetti was not at home on Friday evening August 30, 1974, or on Saturday, August 31, 1974.

Independent evidence established that a person with the American Express Card of John Eldon Smith rented a green Gremlin automobile from Avis Auto rental in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on Friday, August 30, 1974. The rental agent compared the signature with the card because of the reward policy for stolen cards. She thought appellant looked familiar in the courtroom. Witnesses testified that an automobile of the same color and description was seen entering and leaving the crime scene on August 31 with a Florida license driven by the accomplice John Maree. The mileage driven on the automoible was 1,367 miles-more than adequate for a round trip of 1208 miles fron Ft. Lauderdale, Florida to Macon, Georgia.

John Maree's testimony that appellant Tony Machetti called his wife (the other appellant) from Jennings, Florida around 9:00 p.m. on the day of the killing is corroborated by telephone records that such a call was made to a pay station at a department store in North Miami Beach, Florida that the Smith-Machetti family regularly used. An independent witness testified that appellant's wife went to this pay phone at the critical time to get a call from appellant. Appellant's own testimony was that he called his wife at this time although claiming he called her from Ft. Lauderdale.

The [236 Ga. 14] time-distance factors to Jennings, Florida from Macon, Georgia, are consistent with John Maree's testimony and the telephone company records.

As to Rebecca Akins Machetti, John Maree's testimony that he, appellant and her husband planned the fishing trip alibi for him and Tony Machetti for the weekend on which the murders were committed is corroborated by appellant's statement to different law enforcement officers that her husband was on a fishing trip from the afternoon of August 30, 1974 to 1:00 a.m. September 1, 1974. She later told another officer her husband had been on a fishing trip on the critical weekend and said her husband was with John Maree during this period of time.

Independent evidence corroborated John Maree's testimony concerning motives for the murder of Ronald Akins which were (1) insurance monies and (2) an attempt to establish Mafia ties for Tony Machetti. The divorce settlement itself verified his testimony concerning the benefit appellant could derive from the death of her ex-husband through insurance on his life and independent witnesses testified to appellant's alluding to Mafia connections or getting someone in Miami to 'take care of' her ex-husband.

John Maree testified that appellant Rebecca Machetti made several telephone calls to an insurance agent in Macon in an effort to locate her ex-husband and his place of employment. This was corroborated by two employees at Ronald Akins' place of employment who testified that she called on August 12, 1974, trying to find if Mr. Akins was working and how she could reach him. In one of the conversations, she was told that Mr. Akins was on vacation and, according to Maree, appellant changed the plan to murder Mr. Akins to a later date.

An insurance agent verified John Maree's testimony concerning a call by appellant when she asked for his help in acquiring Mr. Akins' address and telephone number and mentioned sending two men to see her ex-husband on business.

John Maree's testimony that Allen Barfield was asked to come to Miami to create an alibi for appellant Rebecca Machetti is corroborated by Mr. Barfield's testimony about the unusual demands made on him concerning canceling plans which he had made for one of appellant's daughters to spend the weekend with him in atlanta. He testified that in a telephone conversation on August 30, 1974, appellant insisted that he come to Miami, saying that she did not want him to be 'in town (Macon, Georgia) that weekend,' and that appellant demanded that he catch an airplane from the Atlanta airport rather than from Macon and instructed him not to leave his car at the Macon airport.

John Maree testified that Ronald Akins was lured to the area where he was killed by Tony Machetti telephoning him about installing a television antenna at the location. Appellant admitted in her testimony that Mr. Akins had done this type of work for many years. A note was found on Mr. Akins' body giving directions to the location.

John Maree testified that he was offered $1,000 to do the driving on the trip from Florida to Macon, Georgia, and demanded payment by a letter to appellant but never received the money. Appellant admitted at trial that she received such a letter demanding money but denied owing Maree any money. When asked what she did with the letter, appellant said that she 'put that letter in the family dible on the advice of my husband.'

Coupled with these specific points of corroboration the jury was entitled to consider appellant's attempts to divert attention elsewhere by her claim that her ex-husband was a drug user, a pusher, and a homosexual.

Appellants rely on Code Ann. § 38-121 which provides that the testimony of a single witness is generally sufficient to establish a fact except where the only witness ' The quantum of testimony and its sufficiency to corroborate the testimony of an accomplice before a jury is a matter addressed entirely to the jury itself.' Brown v. State, 163 Ga. 684, 691, 137 S.E. 31, 35 (1927). In this case the jury could consider and rationally conclude that the appellant Tony Machetti was with John Maree throughout the weekend that murder occurred; that he was away from his home that weekend; that he rented an automobile of the same type and color seen entering the crime scene with his American Express card; and that he called his wife (the other appellant herein) from Jennings, Florida after the crimes were committed. Having concluded these facts they were entitled to find John Maree's testimony corroborated as to appellant Tony Machetti's connection with the crime as required by Code Ann. § 38-121 and West v. State, supra.

is an accomplice, in which case corroborating circumstances may dispense with another witness. Appellants contend that the testimony of John Maree, the accomplice, was not corroborated in that there was no independent evidence which connected them with the alleged crimes, or the commission thereof. In West v. State, 232 Ga. 861, 864, 209 S.E.2d 195, 197 (1974) this court held 'The law is settled in Georgia that the corroborating facts or circumstances must connect the defendant to the crime or lead to the inference that he is guilty, and that such [236 Ga. 16] corroboration must be independent of the accomplice's testimony. Allen v. State, 215 Ga. 155, 111 S.E.2d 70 (1959); Price v. State, 208 Ga. 695, 69 S.E.2d 253 (1952).'

The jury could likewise consider and rationally conclude that the appellant Rebecca Akins Machetti covered for her husband and John Maree by telling authorities that they had been on a fishing trip; that she had threatened to get someone 'to take care of' her ex-husband;...