Raines v. State
304 Ga. 582
| Ga. | 2018Background
- In December 2011 Brandy Guined was shot in Thomaston; she died of a gunshot wound after her taxicab crashed. A purse with cash was found on the victim.
- Dantazias Raines was indicted in Upson County for malice murder and related felonies, plus three misdemeanor obstruction counts; tried by jury in March 2013 and convicted on all counts.
- Key testimonial evidence included: Marquerious Traylor (accompanied Raines to flag the cab and recorded a conversation in which Raines admitted shooting), recordings of statements by Raines played to the jury, and testimony by other witnesses who said Raines placed himself at or described the scene.
- The GBI recovered a .380 pistol and a projectile; forensic testing linked the projectile to the gun. Evidence bags and labels bore Upson County identifiers; a notebook from the cab referenced Avenue N but its contents were largely excluded for lack of foundation.
- Raines challenged venue (particularly for the obstruction counts), sufficiency of evidence (including need for corroboration of accomplice testimony), the absence of a requested accomplice-corroboration jury charge, playing recordings not formally admitted, and his sentence. The trial court denied a new trial; appeal followed.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (State) | Defendant's Argument (Raines) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venue for murder-related felonies | Evidence (witness testimony placing events on Avenue N in Thomaston, labelling on evidence and GBI testimony) supports Upson County venue | Venue not proven; no witness directly stated county where cause of death was inflicted | Affirmed: Evidence (direct and circumstantial) sufficient to establish venue in Upson County for murder-related counts |
| Venue for misdemeanor obstruction counts | Venue can be inferred from testimony about Narcotics Task Force involvement and subsequent transport to Upson jail | State failed to prove physical location in Upson County for the obstruction incidents | Reversed as to obstruction counts: venue not proven; convictions vacated for those counts; State may retry |
| Sufficiency / accomplice corroboration for felony convictions | Independent evidence (Raines’ own admissions to others, cash on victim, resistance to arrest, forensic link of gun to projectile) slightly corroborates Traylor’s accomplice testimony | Traylor was an accomplice; his testimony required corroboration and thus convictions should fail without adequate corroboration | Affirmed: slight independent corroboration satisfied statutory requirement; evidence sufficient for felony convictions |
| Failure to give accomplice-corroboration jury instruction | Instruction unnecessary because trial charge fairly presented issues and defense counsel did not request it | Omission prejudiced Raines; defense theory relied on lack of corroboration | No plain error: omission did not likely affect outcome given the charge and evidence |
| Playing recordings not formally admitted | Playing recordings for jury was permissible; redactions made; recordings were not sent to jury room by agreement | Playing/tendering recordings without formal admission was error and prejudicial | No plain error: Raines failed to show harm from recordings being played but not formally admitted |
| Sentence legality | State concedes sentence needed conformity with Veal postures | Raines argued life without parole portion problematic under intervening precedent | Vacated in part: remanded for resentencing in accordance with Veal v. State |
Key Cases Cited
- Veal v. State, 298 Ga. 691 (establishing sentencing procedure addressed on remand) (Ga. 2016)
- Jones v. State, 272 Ga. 900 (venue standard and review as part of sufficiency) (Ga. 2000)
- Twitty v. State, 298 Ga. 204 (advice on venue instructions and prosecutorial proof) (Ga. 2015)
- Huff v. State, 300 Ga. 807 (slight corroboration standard for accomplice testimony) (Ga. 2017)
- Cowart v. State, 294 Ga. 333 (consider all evidence admitted when reviewing sufficiency) (Ga. 2013)
- Stanbury v. State, 299 Ga. 125 (error from misleading single-witness instruction re: corroboration) (Ga. 2016)
- Pike v. State, 302 Ga. 795 (approach to viewing venue evidence under sufficiency review) (Ga. 2018)
- Edwards v. State, 299 Ga. 20 (corroboration requirement when only witness is accomplice) (Ga. 2016)