Ford v. State, 290 Ga. 45

Scottie McCombs died February 25, 2007 from gunshot wounds as he approached his parked car on a southwest Atlanta street.
Appellant Demetrius Ford a/k/a Delrico Beebe was arrested July 7, 2007 and convicted in 2009 of malice murder and firearm offenses.
Evidence included eyewitness testimony from a convicted felon who saw Ford shoot McCombs and statements by Ford indicating hostility toward the victim.
The State and defense stipulated Ford was a convicted felon on the date of the shooting; Ford presented an alibi defense through his family members.
On appeal, Ford argues ineffective assistance of counsel and various trial court errors affecting the outcome.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Sufficiency of the evidence for malice murder and firearm offenses	State contends evidence supports guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.	Ford argues the evidence fails to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.	Evidence was sufficient for a rational jury to convict.
Prosecutorial misconduct on redirect questioning about a prior incident	State asserts door was opened by defense cross-examination; redirect allowed.	Ford contends misconduct and improper expansion of evidence.	No reversible prosecutorial misconduct; objection preserved the record and ruling favorable to Ford.
Admission of pellet-gun testimony on re-direct	State may rehabilitate credibility with related testimony.	Testimony was irrelevant and prejudicial.	Court did not abuse discretion; testimony relevant to explain credibility rehabilitation.
Admission of jailhouse recordings in alibi defense	State properly admitted recordings consistent with defense strategy.	Recordings could impugn defense counsel's integrity and prejudicially influence jurors.	Admission within trial strategy; not an abuse of discretion.
Ineffective assistance of counsel	Counsel failed to object to certain testimony and failed to request curative instructions.	Counsel's strategic decisions were reasonable and do not amount to ineffective assistance.	No deficient performance prejudicing outcome; trial strategy supported by record.

Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (U.S. 1979) (sufficiency review requires no reasonable doubt)
Willis v. State, 309 Ga.App. 414, 710 S.E.2d 616 (Ga. App. 2011) (prosecutorial misconduct findings reviewed on appeal)
Pruitt v. State, 282 Ga. 30, 644 S.E.2d 837 (Ga. 2007) (ineffective assistance framework; Strickland standard)
Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 104 S. Ct. 2052 (U.S. 1984) (defendant must show deficiency and prejudice)
Jennings v. State, 288 Ga. 120, 702 S.E.2d 151 (Ga. 2010) (trial strategy considerations in admitting evidence)
Fox v. State, 289 Ga. 34, 709 S.E.2d 202 (Ga. 2011) (rehabilitation of witness credibility via prior related testimony)
Greenwood v. State, 309 Ga.App. 893, 714 S.E.2d 602 (Ga. App. 2011) (trial strategy and evidentiary rulings analyzed on review)
Grier v. State, 273 Ga. 363, 541 S.E.2d 369 (Ga. 2001) (reasonable trial tactics and lack of prejudice to defendant)