Curry v. State
305 Ga. 73
Ga.2019Background
- On May 4, 2010, Curry participated in a planned robbery of Terry Dorsey that resulted in the shooting death of Byleem Moore; Curry was tried and convicted of felony murder (predicated on armed robbery), voluntary manslaughter (lesser-included), armed robbery, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime.
- Two eyewitnesses (Ashley Berry and Allison Sides) saw two men run from the scene and later identified Curry in court as one of those men; both had brief, close-range views (about ten feet) shortly after hearing gunfire.
- During trial cross-examination, Berry disclosed she had seen a photo in the newspaper and later picked Curry from a photographic array shown by the prosecutor months before trial; Sides later acknowledged viewing photographs as well.
- The trial court found the State's showing of photographs to the sisters constituted an impermissibly suggestive pretrial identification procedure, ordered recall for additional testimony, and reserved ruling on a mistrial motion.
- Applying the Neil v. Biggers factors (opportunity to view, attention, prior description, certainty, time lapse), the court concluded the totality of circumstances showed no substantial likelihood of irreparable misidentification and denied the motion for mistrial.
- The Court of Appeals affirmed the convictions but vacated the separate life sentence for armed robbery because that offense merged into the felony-murder conviction.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Admissibility of in-court ID after suggestive pretrial photo viewing | Curry: prosecutor showed photos to witnesses without disclosure, creating impermissibly suggestive procedure and risk of misidentification | State: photos were shown but witnesses had adequate independent basis (close, recent observation); photos were produced in discovery and newspaper viewing not police action | Court: Although procedure was suggestive, applying totality/Biggers factors there was no substantial likelihood of irreparable misidentification; IDs admissible |
| Motion for mistrial based on nondisclosure of pretrial identification | Curry: failure to disclose photo viewing prevented expert/examination and warranted mistrial | State: photographs were produced in discovery; oral identifications not subject to discovery; newspaper exposure not law-enforced lineup | Court: No discovery violation shown and trial court did not abuse discretion in denying mistrial |
| Standard of review for mixed law/fact determination on identification reliability | Curry: contends trial findings insufficient to overcome suggestiveness | State: trial court's factual findings entitled to deference; law applied independently | Court: accepted trial court's factual findings (unless clearly erroneous) and independently applied law; affirmed trial court’s conclusion |
| Sentencing error — consecutive life for armed robbery | Curry: additional life sentence for armed robbery improperly imposed where armed robbery merged into felony murder | State: (implicit) sentence imposed by trial court | Held: Additional life sentence for armed robbery vacated because that conviction merged with felony murder |
Key Cases Cited
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (standard for sufficiency of the evidence)
- Neil v. Biggers, 409 U.S. 188 (factors for evaluating suggestive identifications)
- Jones v. State, 273 Ga. 213 (reliability/totality test for challenged identifications)
- Thomason v. State, 268 Ga. 298 (listing Biggers factors)
- Mathis v. State, 291 Ga. 268 (discovery obligations regarding witness statements)
- Brown v. State, 302 Ga. 813 (merger of underlying felony with felony-murder conviction)
- Joncamlae v. State, 267 Ga. App. 214 (prejudice where late disclosure of prosecutor-showed photographs affected witness certainty)
- Cikora v. Dugger, 840 F.2d 893 (standard for mixed question of law and fact review)