Lewis v. State, 765 S.E.2d 911 (Ga. 2014). · Go Syfert
Lewis v. State, 765 S.E.2d 911 (Ga. 2014). Cases Citing This Book View Copy Cite
60 citation events (60 in the last 25 years) across 2 distinct courts.
Strongest positive: Thompson v. State (ga, 2024-04-16)
Treatment trajectory · 2015 → 2026 · click a year to view as-of
2015 2020 2026
Top citers, strongest first. 23 distinct citers. How cited ↗
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Thompson v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2024 · confidence medium
See, e.g., Montgomery v. State, 315 Ga. 467, 474 (3) ( 883 SE2d 351 ) (2023); Bundel v. State, 308 Ga. 317, 318-319 (1) ( 840 SE2d 349 ) (2020); Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (3) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) King v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2023 · confidence medium
See, e.g., Montgomery v. State, 315 Ga. 467, 474 ( 883 SE2d 351 ) (2023); Bundel v. State, 308 Ga. 317, 318-319 ( 840 SE2d 349 ) (2020); Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Betty Ayers-Jones v. State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2019 · confidence medium
Appellate courts may “only review the case under the standard espoused in Jackson v. Virginia [ 443 U. S. 307, 319 (III) (B) ( 99 SCt 2781 , 61 LE2d 560) (1979)], to determine if the evidence, when viewed in the light most favorable to the prosecution, supports the verdict.” (Citation and punctuation omitted.) Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014).
cited Cited as authority (rule) Ashley v. the State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2017 · confidence medium
Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (3) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014) (citation and punctuation omitted).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Rebecca Wiggins v. State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2016 · confidence medium
However, when a defendant seeks appellate review of “a trial court’s refusal to grant a new trial on the general grounds . . . , [the appellate courts] can only review the case under the standard espoused in Jackson v. Virginia, [ 443 U.S. 307 ( 99 SCt 2781 , 61 LE2d 560) (1979)], to determine if the evidence, when viewed in the light most favorable to the prosecution, supports the verdict.” (Citation and punctuation omitted.) Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (3) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014).
cited Cited as authority (rule) Wiggins v. State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2016 · confidence medium
(Citation and punctuation omitted.) Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (3) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Harper v. State
Ga. · 2015 · confidence medium
Although Harper contends that the testimony of Clark and the two inmates was not reliable, direct evidence is not converted into circumstantial evidence by a witness’s credibility or lack thereof, see Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (2) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014), and the weight and reliability of such evidence is for the jury’s resolution.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Hill v. State
Ga. · 2015 · confidence medium
Appellant disputes the credibility of the identification testimony, but “direct evidence from a witness who observed a crime is not converted into circumstantial evidence by the witness’s credibility or lack thereof.” Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014).
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Taylor v. the State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2015 · confidence medium
We adopt the first of these spellings. 2 Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 ( 99 SCt 2781 , 61 LE2d 560) (1979). 3 However, Watkins testified that Taylor was not associated with the Crips; instead, he had just been invited to “chill” with the others that day. 4 Faulks, Gary (the murder victim), and Stroud were identified as associating with Bloomfield. 5 Moreover, to the extent Taylor is asserting that the trial court erred in refusing to grant a new trial on what is commonly called “the general grounds,” we note that on appeal, “this court can only review the case under the standard …
examined Cited "see" Poole v. State (4×)
Ga. · 2021 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259 (3) (765 SE2d 911) (2014).
discussed Cited "see" Thrift v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2020 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (3) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014).
discussed Cited "see" Perez v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2020 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (3) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014).
discussed Cited "see" Clay v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2020 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (3) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014).
discussed Cited "see" Davenport v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2020 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (3) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014). other special grounds of the motion for new trial which were not argued will be considered abandoned.”); Alexander v. State, 225 Ga. 358, 360-361 (5) ( 168 SE2d 315 ) (1969) (“While the sufficiency of the evidence to authorize the verdict is raised by other enumerations of error, such question is treated as abandoned inasmuch as the same is not argued by the appellant.”).
discussed Cited "see" Smith v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2020 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 260-261 ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014) (credibility of witness who initially lied to police because she “did not want to get involved . . . is a matter to be decided by the jury that saw and heard the testimony, not by an appellate court reviewing a 7 transcript” (citation and punctuation omitted)).
discussed Cited "see" Green v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2018 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (3) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014).
discussed Cited "see" Green v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2018 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State , 296 Ga. 259 , 261 (3), 765 S.E.2d 911 (2014).
discussed Cited "see" Menzies v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2018 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014); Joyner v. State, 280 Ga. 37, 38-39 ( 622 SE2d 319 ) (2005).
discussed Cited "see" Menzies v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2018 · signal: see · confidence high
See *643 Lewis v. State , 296 Ga. 259 , 261, 765 S.E.2d 911 (2014) ; Joyner v. State , 280 Ga. 37 , 38-39, 622 S.E.2d 319 (2005).
discussed Cited "see" Carter v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2017 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (3) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014). 3 unqualified juror on its own motion.
discussed Cited "see" Carter v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2017 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (3) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014).
discussed Cited "see" Norman v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2016 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014). 3.
discussed Cited "see" Lucas v. the State (2×)
Ga. Ct. App. · 2015 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lewis v. State, 296 Ga. 259, 261 (3) ( 765 SE2d 911 ) (2014).
Retrieving the full opinion text from the archive…
Lewis
v.
the State
S14A1338.
Supreme Court of Georgia.
Nov 17, 2014.
765 S.E.2d 911
Walker L. Chandler, for appellant., Paul L. Howard, Jr., District Attorney, Paige Reese Whitaker, Arthur C. Walton, Assistant District Attorneys, Samuel S. Olens, Attorney General, Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Deputy Attorney General, Paula K. Smith, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Meghan H. Hill, Assistant Attorney General, for appellee.
Nahmias.
Cited by 27 opinions  |  Published
NAHMIAS, Justice.

Appellant Brandon Lewis was convicted of felony murder and other crimes in connection with the shooting death of Deonte Hudson. On appeal, he argues only that the evidence presented at trial did not support his convictions. We affirm. [1]

1. Viewed in the light most favorable to the verdicts, the evidence presented at trial showed the following. Hudson lived with his mother in the Bowen Homes apartment complex in Atlanta. On the morning of November 13, 2007, his mother sent him to a nearby store to buy stamps. As Hudson walked to the store, Appellant, who was then 16 years old, 14-year-old Montrez Huff, and two other boys positioned themselves near Hudson’s apartment and waited for him[*260] to return. [2] As Hudson approached, the boys signaled to each other, and Appellant then confronted Hudson on the patio of the apartment. The two began fighting, and Hudson hit Appellant in the face several times. Hudson then ran across the street to escape, but Appellant pulled out a gun and shot him in the right buttock; the bullet tore into Hudson’s abdomen, severing an artery and causing massive internal bleeding. He collapsed beside a dumpster, and Appellant, Huff, and the other two boys fled the scene. Hudson was still alive when an ambulance arrived, but he died at the hospital later that day.

After the shooting, Appellant took a MARTA bus to school. When he got to school late, he went to the nurse’s office complaining of a headache. His clothes were rumpled; his eyes were puffy; and he vomited shortly after arriving. Appellant told the nurse that he ran into a wall at a MARTA station that morning, and he paced nervously as he repeatedly said that he wanted to go home. The nurse called Appellant’s grandmother to take him home, but when Appellant found out that she would have to take the bus to get him, he walked out of the office and left the school.

Two days after the shooting, Appellant gave a videotaped statement to the police, which was later played for the jury at trial. Appellant, who acknowledged that his nickname was “Shortneck,” said that he visited a friend at Bowen Homes on the morning of November 13 before arriving at school at 10:00 a.m. When an officer asked about Appellant’s bruised eye, he said that he ran into a wall at Bowen Homes while running to catch a bus to school.

At trial, two witnesses identified Appellant as the boy who shot Hudson. Amber Askew lived across the street from Hudson’s apartment and saw the entire incident. Although she initially told the police that she could not identify the shooter because of a sty in her eye, she later told a detective that she saw a boy she knew as Shortneck shoot Hudson. At trial, Askew identified Appellant as Shortneck and explained that she initially lied to the police because she did not want to get involved. The second witness was Huff, who testified that on the morning of November 13, two boys woke him by throwing rocks at his window. Shortly after joining the boys outside his apartment, Huff saw Appellant, whom Huff called Shortneck, running through the patios outside of Hudson’s building. Huff then[*261] watched as Appellant and Hudson fought. When Appellant pulled out a gun, Huff turned and ran, hearing a single gunshot as he reached his apartment door.

2. Appellant argues first that the evidence presented at trial was legally insufficient to support his convictions because the State’s two key witnesses, Askew and Huff, were so unreliable that their testimony should be considered circumstantial rather than direct evidence. Thus, Appellant continues, this case is governed by former OCGA § 24-4-6, which said, “To warrant a conviction on circumstantial evidence, the proved facts shall not only be consistent with the hypothesis of guilt, but shall exclude every other reasonable hypothesis save that of the guilt of the accused.” [3]

However, direct evidence from a witness who observed a crime is not converted into circumstantial evidence by the witness’s credibility or lack thereof. And whether a witness’s testimony should be believed is “a matter to be decided by the jury that saw and heard the testimony, not by an appellate court reviewing a transcript.” Walker v. State, 295 Ga. 688, 690 (1) (b) (763 SE2d 704) (2014). See also Vega v. State, 285 Ga. 32, 33 (673 SE2d 223) (2009) (“ ‘It was for the jury to determine the credibility of the witnesses and to resolve any conflicts or inconsistencies in the evidence.’ ” (citation omitted)). When viewed in the light most favorable to the verdicts, the evidence presented at trial and summarized above was sufficient to authorize a rational jury to find Appellant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the crimes for which he was convicted and sentenced. See Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U. S. 307, 319 (99 SCt 2781, 61 LE2d 560) (1979).

3. Appellant also argues that the trial court erred by failing to direct a verdict of acquittal on all counts and by failing to exercise its discretion to grant a new trial based on the weight of the evidence. However,

“[wjhether an appellant is asking this court to review a [trial] court’s refusal to grant a new trial [on the general grounds] or its refusal to grant a motion for directed verdict, this court can only review the case under the standard espoused in Jackson v. Virginia, [supra], to determine if the evidence, when viewed in the light most favorable to the prosecution, supports the verdict.”

Walker, 295 Ga. at 690 (1) (b), n. 2 (citation omitted). And we have[*262] concluded in Division 2 above that the evidence presented in this case was legally sufficient under the Jackson v. Virginia standard.

Decided November 17, 2014. Walker L. Chandler, for appellant. Paul L. Howard, Jr., District Attorney, Paige Reese Whitaker, Arthur C. Walton, Assistant District Attorneys, Samuel S. Olens, Attorney General, Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Deputy Attorney General, Paula K. Smith, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Meghan H. Hill, Assistant Attorney General, for appellee.

Judgment affirmed.

All the Justices concur.
1

Hudson was killed on November 13,2007. OnNovember 17,2009, Appellant was indicted in Fulton County for malice murder, two counts of felony murder, criminal attempt to commit armed robbery, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. The case was tried from May 24 to 28, 2010. The trial court granted Appellant’s motion for a directed verdict of acquittal on the charge of criminal attempt to commit armed robbery and the related felony murder count. The jury then found Appellant not guilty of malice murder but guilty of the remaining charges. The trial court sentenced him to serve life in prison for felony murder based on aggravated assault and five consecutive years for the firearm conviction; the aggravated assault count merged. Appellant filed a timely motion for new trial, which he amended on December 16,2011. After an evidentiary hearing, the trial court denied the motion on April 10, 2012. Appellant filed a timely notice of appeal, and after a delay in obtaining the record from the trial court clerk, the case was docketed in this Court for the September 2014 term and submitted for decision on the briefs.

2

Huff was indicted with Appellant, but two weeks before trial, Huff offered to testify against Appellant, and their trials were severed. The State dismissed all charges against Huff a few days after Appellant’s trial concluded. The record does not indicate whether the other two boys were indicted or even identified.

3

This case was tried under Georgia’s old Evidence Code. Former OCGA § 24-4-6 is carried forward in the new Evidence Code as OCGA § 24-14-6.