Payne v. State
338 Ga. App. 677
Ga. Ct. App.2016Background
- On Dec. 31, 2012 police responded to a fight at a trailer park in Chatham County; a white van driven by John Robert Payne, Jr. fled as officers approached.
- An officer followed, activated blue lights just after the van turned from Downing Avenue onto 43rd Street, and the van then turned onto Skidaway Road while driving erratically.
- A taxi driver who was at a KFC on Skidaway testified he saw the chase and stated he was "on the roads of Chatham County" that night.
- The van crashed into a tree (identified as in Chatham County); the van was registered to Payne and contained blood matching Payne’s DNA.
- Payne and co-defendant Charles Sapp were tried; Payne convicted of fleeing or attempting to elude an officer and acquitted of other charges. He appealed, arguing (1) insufficient proof of venue and (2) ineffective assistance of counsel for conceding the fleeing count.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venue for fleeing/eluding | State: testimony placed parts of the chase (Skidaway Road, crash site) in Chatham County; taxi driver placed himself on Skidaway in Chatham County | Payne: no direct evidence that the specific roads where he fled (beyond the trailer park) were in Chatham County, so venue unproven | Affirmed: evidence (officer testimony, taxi witness, crash site) permitted a rational jury to find venue in Chatham County, at least on Skidaway Road |
| Sufficiency standard | State: view evidence most favorably to verdict; jury credibility determinations control | Payne: relied on precedents requiring more than "nearby site" evidence to establish venue | Court follows Jackson and Georgia precedent: view evidence for prosecution; jury question; sufficiency met here |
| Ineffective assistance — failure to request ‘‘wilfully’’ instruction | Payne: counsel should have requested a wilful mens rea charge to contest intent | State: counsel made a tactical concession on fleeing given overwhelming evidence | Rejected: counsel’s tactical concession was reasonable; no deficient performance shown |
| Ineffective assistance — failure to argue blood-loss confusion | Payne: counsel should have argued loss of blood could explain erratic driving, negating wilfulness | State: counsel testified he could not credibly make that argument and strategically conceded fleeing to preserve credibility on more serious charges | Rejected: strategic choice was reasonable given evidence and sentencing exposure; no reasonable probability of different outcome |
Key Cases Cited
- Greeson v. State, 287 Ga. 764 (discussing deference to jury credibility findings in sufficiency review)
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (federal standard for sufficiency of the evidence review)
- Grant v. State, 326 Ga. App. 121 (reversing fleeing conviction for failure to prove venue)
- Martin v. McLaughlin, 298 Ga. 44 (slight evidence of venue insufficient)
- Jones v. State, 272 Ga. 900 (venue precedent requiring proof beyond nearby-site testimony)
- Propst v. State, 299 Ga. 557 (venue may be proved by direct and circumstantial evidence and is generally for the jury)
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (ineffective-assistance standard: deficiency and prejudice)