Mowoe v. State, 328 Ga. App. 536

Victim and Mowoe were neighbors in the same apartment building; victim lived upstairs with her young daughter.
On Sept. 12, 2008, Mowoe entered the victim’s apartment, forced the victim into the bedroom, removed her underwear, and had forcible intercourse; victim suffered bruises and vaginal swelling; DNA matched Mowoe.
Mowoe admitted intercourse but claimed it was consensual and that another woman (LaToya Wise) could corroborate he was on the phone and that the victim had fallen the prior night causing bruises.
During closing, the prosecutor asked the courtroom to identify Wise; an unidentified person stood up, implying Wise was present and available though she had not testified.
Defense counsel did not object at trial; at a motion for new trial hearing Wise testified she would have testified for the defense and recounted facts supportive of Mowoe’s version.
The trial court denied the new trial motion; the appellate court reversed, finding ineffective assistance for failure to object to the prosecutor’s improper demonstration and that prejudice existed warranting a new trial.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether counsel was ineffective for failing to object to prosecutor’s demonstration during closing	Mowoe: counsel was deficient for not objecting when prosecutor had a person in gallery identified during closing, which improperly suggested defense failed to call witness	State: the prosecutor’s comment only highlighted that Wise did not testify; no new facts were introduced	Court: Counsel was deficient for failing to object; demonstration was improper and prejudicial; new trial warranted
Whether prosecutor’s stand-up demonstration constituted introduction of new evidence	State: it merely showed Wise’s presence, a fact of record	Mowoe: demonstration presented evidence not in record, unfairly bolstering victim and undermining defense	Court: demonstration did introduce unproven factual impression and was improper during closing
Whether the error was harmless given evidence of guilt	State: evidence (DNA, injuries, ID) supported conviction beyond a reasonable doubt	Mowoe: credibility contest made the demonstration likely outcome-determinative	Court: error was not harmless; credibility was central and demonstration likely affected jury outcome
Whether other ineffective-assistance claims required resolution	Mowoe raised additional claims (impeachment with prior audio statement; failure to secure witness)	State: not reached if primary claim fails	Court: because new trial granted on main claim, other claims were not decided

Walters v. State, 244 Ga. App. 657 (evidentiary sufficiency standard in similar sexual-assault context)
Thompson v. State, 294 Ga. 693 (ineffective assistance standard — deficient performance and prejudice)
Williams v. State, 254 Ga. 508 (prosecutor may not inject unproven facts in closing)
Morgan v. State, 267 Ga. 203 (comment on defendant’s failure to call a witness is permissible only when certain conditions met)
Sumlin v. State, 283 Ga. 264 (failure to object can waive Confrontation/other rights)
State v. Wooten, 273 Ga. 529 (prosecutor’s duty is to seek justice; limits on prosecutorial conduct)