Mosley v. State, 300 Ga. 521

On Sept. 15, 2011 Michael Coleman was found with multiple, severe stab wounds; he died. Evidence showed he had been on a blood-covered couch and likely seated or lying when attacked.
Witness Dykes saw a Caucasian man with dark hair, a teardrop tattoo under his eye, and a lip ring (attributes matching Mosley) leave the scene on a bicycle; a bike recovered from Mosley’s residence had blood on a brake handle.
Mosley arrived later at a friend’s home covered in blood and claimed a bicycle accident; the next morning he told his roommate he had killed someone in self-defense after the other pulled a gun; he fled when police approached and was arrested nearby.
Forensics showed numerous deep puncture wounds and no evidence of a struggle at the scene; Coleman was unarmed. Mosley had no observable injuries after the encounter; Mosley testified he stabbed Coleman in self-defense during a fight over Mosley’s wallet.
A jury convicted Mosley of malice murder and possession of a knife during the commission of a crime; he was sentenced to life plus five years. The felony-murder verdict was vacated by operation of law. Mosley’s post-trial motion and amended motion for new trial were denied.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Sufficiency of evidence to prove malice and related offenses	Mosley: killing was lawful self-defense, so evidence insufficient to prove malice or commission of aggravated assault	State: physical and forensic evidence, disparity in size/age, multiple savage wounds, lack of defendant injuries, and victim unarmed support implied malice and aggravated assault	Court: Affirmed — jury could reject self-defense and find guilt beyond reasonable doubt (Jackson review)
Trial-court supplementation of missing first-day transcript under OCGA §5-6-41(f)	Mosley: supplementing record from witnesses’ and counsel’s recollection violates due process because it relies on memory rather than an original transcript	State: court followed §5-6-41(f) procedures, reheard witnesses and counsel; trial judge’s adoption is final under statute	Court: Affirmed — trial court complied with statute; its decision to supplement the record is final and not subject to review

Glenn v. State, 296 Ga. 509 (Ga. 2015) (appellate review defers to jury on credibility and weight of evidence)
Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (U.S. 1979) (standard for sufficiency of the evidence review)
Carr v. State, 267 Ga. 547 (Ga. 1997) (statutory procedure for correcting or completing the record when transcript is missing)
Glass v. State, 289 Ga. 542 (Ga. 2011) (re-creation of lost transcript from recollection authorized under OCGA §5-6-41)
Leeks v. State, 296 Ga. 515 (Ga. 2015) (trial judge’s adoption of supplemental testimony is dispositive and not subject to appellate review)