Jackson v. the State
329 Ga. App. 240
Ga. Ct. App.2014Background
- Jackson, a former Super Service truck driver, sent a message indicating anger and resignation after interacting with operations director Ellington. He then dropped his freight trailer and drove the truck cab back to the employer’s Ellenwood facility.
- Instead of following entry procedures, Jackson drove past the guard shack, through an interior gate, made a sharp left turn, and struck two parked SUVs (Ellington’s and terminal manager Bryan’s).
- After exiting the cab carrying a wooden "tire bat," Jackson told Ellington he was "going to whoop somebody’s ass," admitted he had hit cars, and was later arrested; he testified to the incidents at trial.
- Jackson testified the truck’s throttle/accelerator became stuck and he accidentally hit parked cars while steering to avoid hitting employees at a nearby picnic table.
- At charge conference, Jackson requested jury instructions on accident and justification; the court gave accident but refused justification, concluding his testimony supported accident (unintentional malfunction) rather than intentional but justified conduct.
- Jackson appealed the denial of the justification charge; the Court of Appeals affirmed, holding justification was inconsistent with his accident theory and not supported by the evidence.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Jackson was entitled to a jury charge on justification | Jackson argued he intentionally steered into cars to avoid hitting people, so justification (protecting others) applied | Trial court/State argued Jackson’s core claim was an accidental, involuntary throttle malfunction, supporting only accident, not intentional conduct | Court held no error: justification was inconsistent with Jackson’s accident-based defense and was not supported by evidence |
Key Cases Cited
- Marriott v. State, 320 Ga. App. 58 (discussing standard of review and construing evidence for guilty verdicts)
- Price v. State, 289 Ga. 459 (defendant entitled to requested affirmative-defense charge if any evidence supports it)
- Lewis v. State, 292 Ga. App. 257 (whether evidence supports an affirmative defense is a question of law)
- Burdett v. State, 285 Ga. App. 571 (de novo review of trial court’s ruling on defense instruction)
- Brower v. State, 298 Ga. App. 699 (justification requires admitting charged conduct but denying criminal intent)
- Tarvestad v. State, 261 Ga. 605 (justification instruction proper where defendant admitted conduct but claimed emergency necessity)
- Moore v. State, 234 Ga. App. 332 (justification where defendant’s conduct was reasonable under medical distress)
- Ogilvie v. State, 292 Ga. 6 (accident defense for involuntary acts from unforeseeable physical ailment or external force)
- McBurnette v. State, 236 Ga. App. 398 (accident instruction warranted where contact was inadvertent)
- Sapp v. State, 179 Ga. App. 614 (accident instruction where obstruction resulted from illness-caused fall)
- Lee v. State, 320 Ga. App. 573 (accident unavailable where conduct shows utter disregard for safety)
- Hill v. State, 300 Ga. App. 210 (generally mutually exclusive defenses of accident and justification; exceptions exist)
- Hudson v. State, 284 Ga. 595 (both accident and justification charges appropriate where weapon use may have been intentional but injury accidental)
- Koritta v. State, 263 Ga. 703 (both accident and justification when a weapon accidentally discharges during self-defense)
- Turner v. State, 262 Ga. 359 (same principle regarding accidental weapon discharge and self-defense)
- London v. State, 289 Ga. App. 17 (supporting refusal to charge justification where evidence favors accident)
- Davis v. State, 269 Ga. 276 (absence of criminal negligence supports accident defense)