Lebis v. State
302 Ga. 750
| Ga. | 2017Background
- Lisa Ann Lebis and her husband Tremaine lived in a small motel room for eight days while avoiding his arrest; police were called after Lebis’s disruptive behavior.
- Officers Brown and Callahan encountered the couple; during an attempted arrest Tremaine fled, drew a .357 Glock from a fanny pack, and fatally shot Officer Callahan; Officer Brown returned fire and killed Tremaine.
- Numerous firearms, ammunition, and weapon components were found in the motel room in plain view and in intermixed luggage; Lebis admitted knowledge that Tremaine carried a gun and knew the seller of other weapons but denied awareness of all weapons in the room.
- A jury convicted Lebis of felony murder (as a party to Tremaine’s possession of a firearm by a convicted felon), multiple possession counts (firearms and dangerous weapons), four misdemeanor obstruction counts, and other offenses; she appealed challenging sufficiency of evidence and ineffective assistance claims.
- The Supreme Court of Georgia affirmed convictions for felony murder and all possession counts and two obstruction convictions (failure to comply with life-saving/commands), but reversed two misdemeanor obstruction convictions (yelling during the attempted arrest) and remanded for resentencing.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (Lebis) | Defendant's Argument (State) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sufficiency of constructive possession convictions for weapons found in motel room | Evidence only showed proximity and cohabitation; insufficient to prove constructive possession | Circumstantial evidence (intermixed belongings, plain view weapons, admissions, concealment behavior) supported joint constructive possession | Affirmed possession convictions |
| Felony murder liability as party to Tremaine’s possession of murder weapon | Lebis argued she neither possessed nor had control of the gun at time of shooting, so cannot be guilty of felony murder predicated on his possession | State argued Lebis was a party to the crime (shared scheme/conspiracy) and thus accountable for co‑actor’s possession that proximately caused death | Affirmed felony murder conviction as party to the crime |
| Sufficiency of misdemeanor obstruction convictions for yelling during attempted arrest (Counts V & VI) | Lebis: shouting at officers did not intentionally hinder or interfere with arrest; mere words insufficient | State: officer testimony that her yelling was “not assisting” supported obstruction | Reversed two obstruction convictions (words alone did not show intentional hindrance here) |
| Sufficiency of obstruction convictions for interfering with life‑saving efforts and disobeying commands (Counts VII & VIII) | Lebis: challenged sufficiency; argued short distraction did not contribute to death | State: Lebis failed to obey commands, diverted officer attention, and advanced toward officers while on phone | Affirmed obstruction convictions for hindering life‑saving efforts and for refusing to comply with Officer Frazier |
| Ineffective assistance of counsel for not transcribing opening/closing and not presenting medical expert on causation | Lebis: counsel’s omissions prejudiced defense (record/transcript and expert showing distraction did not contribute to death) | State: no prejudice shown from failing to transcribe; and causation expert not required because offense is obstruction of duty, not proximate cause of death | Ineffective-assistance claims denied |
Key Cases Cited
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (sufficiency-of-the-evidence standard)
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (ineffective-assistance standard)
- In the Interest of D. H., 285 Ga. 51 (definition of actual possession)
- State v. Lewis, 249 Ga. 565 (constructive possession: power and intent to control)
- Holiman v. State, 313 Ga. App. 76 (constructive-possession proven by circumstantial evidence)
- Stacey v. State, 292 Ga. 838 (presence/proximity insufficient; plain view and shared residence factors)
- Davis v. State, 287 Ga. App. 783 (co‑actor possession and party-to-a-crime responsibility)
- Roscoe v. State, 288 Ga. 775 (fatal variance/materiality of indictment allegations)
- Jackson v. State, 287 Ga. 646 (proximate cause analysis for felony-murder predicate felonies)
- Dublin v. State, 302 Ga. 60 (presence, companionship, and conduct infer party-to-crime)