Scott v. State
306 Ga. 417
Ga.2019Background
- In December 2014, Jeremy Scott shot Romondo Ashley outside a home; Ashley died from two gunshot wounds to the head. Scott left the scene and later called the victim’s girlfriend while police investigated.
- Arianna and Dionna Kearse witnessed the shooting, identified Scott at the scene and in a photo lineup, and led police to Scott’s brother’s truck. Officers later found a revolver hidden under a shed on Scott’s property; ballistics matched a bullet recovered from Ashley’s skull to that revolver.
- Scott told police he had struck Ashley with the revolver in self‑defense and that the gun accidentally discharged during the altercation.
- A Chatham County grand jury indicted Scott on multiple counts including malice murder, felony murder (predicated on aggravated assault), aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during commission of a felony, and criminal use of a firearm with an altered serial number.
- At trial the jury convicted Scott of felony murder (Count 2), certain counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, aggravated assault, and criminal use of a firearm with an altered identification mark; he was acquitted on other counts. He was sentenced to life plus consecutive and concurrent firearm terms.
- On appeal Scott challenged (1) his counsel’s effectiveness for failing to object to a prosecutor comment about his silence/flight (invoking Mallory), and (2) the trial court’s charge on the defense of accident as applied to the underlying aggravated assault and resulting felony‑murder charge.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sufficiency of evidence for convictions | (Scott did not dispute) Evidence supported convictions | State: evidence sufficient to support jury verdicts | Affirmed; evidence sufficient under Jackson v. Virginia |
| Prosecutor’s comment on defendant’s silence/flight and counsel’s failure to object (Mallory) | Scott: prosecutor’s argument improperly commented on his pre‑arrest silence; counsel ineffective for not objecting | State: Mallory’s bright‑line rule was abrogated by the new Evidence Code; counsel not ineffective for failing to rely on an inapplicable case | Affirmed; Mallory was abrogated (see Orr), so counsel’s failure to object on that ground was not deficient |
| Jury instruction on defense of accident and its effect on aggravated assault (predicate) and felony murder | Scott: trial court should have told jury accident is a defense to aggravated assault and that finding accident would require acquittal of felony‑murder and related firearm counts | State: court’s instructions tracked OCGA and pattern jury charges; accident applies to “any crime” but not to felony murder when underlying assault is intentional | Affirmed; charge correctly stated law and was supported by the evidence—no plain error |
Key Cases Cited
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (1979) (standard for reviewing sufficiency of evidence)
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (1984) (two‑part ineffective assistance of counsel test)
- Mallory v. State, 261 Ga. 625 (1991) (pre‑Evidence Code rule barring comment on defendant silence)
- State v. Orr, 305 Ga. 729 (2019) (holding Mallory was abrogated by Georgia’s new Evidence Code)
- Tessmer v. State, 273 Ga. 220 (2000) (accident can be a defense to underlying felony but not to felony murder when the underlying felony was intentional)