Gates v. State
298 Ga. 324
| Ga. | 2016Background
- Victim Anthony Wilson was shot six times and killed in a DeKalb County apartment parking lot on Nov. 30, 2012; ten 9mm casings from the same gun were recovered.
- Defendant Lamar Gates lived at the complex with girlfriend Elizabeth Perticari, who had received nude photos and a suggestive text from Wilson the day before the shooting.
- Witnesses testified Gates had expressed anger about the messages and had shown firearms to neighbors previously; two eyewitnesses who knew Gates saw him shoot Wilson and flee in Gates’s green pickup.
- Gates was arrested days later; officers found a loaded .45 in his truck (he was not charged for possession of that gun).
- A jury convicted Gates of malice murder and related counts; he received life imprisonment. Gates appealed, challenging evidentiary rulings, prosecutor’s closing argument, and trial counsel’s effectiveness.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (Gates) | Defendant's Argument (State) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Admissibility of Wilson’s text/nudes (hearsay) | Text is hearsay and inadmissible | Text was offered not for truth but for its effect on Gates (motive) | Admitted; not hearsay because offered to show effect on hearer |
| Admission of testimony/evidence about other firearms (not murder weapon) | Admission was error affecting substantial rights (plain error) | Any error did not probably affect the outcome given overwhelming evidence | No plain reversible error; cannot show outcome probably affected |
| Prosecutor’s closing remarks arguing propensity/use of guns | Closing improperly appealed to propensity; plain error review should apply | Closing argument is not evidence; Gates waived review by not objecting; Georgia has no rule like Fed. R. Crim. P. 52(b) for plain-error review of closing | Waived; no plain-error review available for unobjected-to closing arguments under Georgia law |
| Ineffective assistance for failure to object to firearm evidence and closing | Counsel was deficient and prejudice resulted | Strategy choices were reasonable; even if deficient, no prejudice given overwhelming evidence | Claim denied: counsel’s choices were strategic and Gates cannot show prejudice under Strickland |
Key Cases Cited
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (establishes sufficiency-of-the-evidence standard)
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (ineffective assistance two-prong test)
- Puckett v. United States, 556 U.S. 129 (plain-error standard referenced)
- United States v. Cruz, 805 F.2d 1464 (11th Cir.) (statement admissible to show effect on hearer)
- Miller v. State, 275 Ga. 32 (Georgia precedent on statements offered for effect, not hearsay)
- State v. Kelly, 290 Ga. 29 (adopted plain-error framework and reliance on federal decisions)