Manner v. State
302 Ga. 877
Ga.2017Background
- Defendant Paul Manner was convicted of malice murder and related counts for the August 23, 2013 shooting death of Tracey Kingcannon; jury found him guilty on six counts and he received life plus consecutive terms.
- State’s sole eyewitness, Jermaine Davis, testified he sold a .380 to Manner, drove Manner and DeMarcus Abrams to the victim’s house, watched them shoot, and drove them away; Davis later pleaded first offender for a false-statement charge and testified as part of his plea conditions.
- Brandon and Quintavius Hishida testified they saw Manner armed earlier and heard him say he would “get” the victim; both had pending aggravated-assault charges from a May 2013 altercation with the victim.
- Trial counsel withdrew a requested accomplice-corroboration jury instruction (despite evidence Davis acted as an accomplice) and elected to impeach through cross-examination rather than introduce the Hishidas’ written statements; she also requested but was denied a jury instruction to impeach Davis by prior conviction.
- On appeal Manner argued (1) counsel was ineffective for withdrawing the accomplice corroboration charge, (2) counsel was ineffective for not introducing the Hishidas’ written confessions, (3) the court erred in refusing an impeachment-by-prior-conviction instruction regarding Davis’s first offender plea, and (4) the felony-murder verdicts should have been vacated rather than merged.
- Court: counsel’s strategic choices fell within reasonable professional judgment; no Strickland deficiency found on the instruction-withdrawal or evidence-admission claims; first-offender plea was not a conviction for Rule 609 purposes, so no error in refusing the impeachment instruction; but felony-murder verdicts are vacated by operation of law (State conceded).
Issues
| Issue | Manner's Argument | State's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accomplice-corroboration instruction: counsel withdrew requested charge | Withdrawal was ineffective because Davis was an accomplice and jury should have been instructed that accomplice testimony requires corroboration | Withdrawal was a reasonable tactical decision because counsel pursued a theory blaming Davis/Abrams and feared the instruction would suggest Manner’s involvement | Counsel’s withdrawal was a reasonable strategic choice; no Strickland deficiency; no reversal required |
| Failure to admit Hishida written confessions | Counsel ineffective for not introducing the brothers’ written statements showing prior shooting/confession | Counsel reasonably relied on detective testimony and worried the written statements minimized Hishidas’ culpability; cross-examination elicited that confessions existed | Counsel’s decision fell within wide range of professional judgment; no ineffective assistance shown |
| Refusal to give impeachment-by-prior-conviction instruction re Davis’s first-offender plea | First-offender plea is not yet discharged, so it is admissible impeachment and jury instruction was warranted | A first-offender plea without adjudication of guilt is not a "conviction" under Rule 609; the statute’s first-offender language exempts discharged convictions, not create convictions where none exist | Court correctly held first-offender plea was not a conviction for Rule 609; no error in refusing instruction; no counsel deficiency for failing to preserve objection |
| Treatment of felony-murder verdicts at sentencing | Felony-murder verdicts were merged into malice murder and should have been vacated by operation of law | State conceded error; court’s merging nomenclature was incorrect though sentence unaffected | Felony-murder verdicts vacated by operation of law (court’s judgment otherwise affirmed) |
Key Cases Cited
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (establishing two-part ineffective-assistance test)
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (standard for sufficiency of evidence review)
- Edwards v. State, 299 Ga. 20 (accomplice corroboration requirement explained)
- Hornbuckle v. State, 300 Ga. 750 (slight evidence can authorize accomplice-corroboration charge)
- Stanbury v. State, 299 Ga. 125 (failure to give warranted accomplice corroboration charge may be plain error)
- Fisher v. State, 299 Ga. 478 (contrast case where failing to request accomplice corroboration was unreasonable)
- Williams v. State, 301 Ga. 829 (first-offender plea is not a conviction for impeachment)
- Matthews v. State, 268 Ga. 798 (same rule on first-offender non-conviction)
- Favors v. State, 296 Ga. 842 (felony-murder verdicts vacated by operation of law when duplicative of malice murder)
- Mosley v. State, 295 Ga. 123 (no prejudice where weight of evidence supports verdict)