Starks v. State
304 Ga. 308
Ga.2018Background
- On July 4, 2013, Joshua Starks went to purchase a quarter-pound of marijuana at a hotel; a confrontation with Stenneth Charles (and others) ended in a gunfight in which Charles was killed. Starks was armed and had brought $1,000 for the purchase.
- At trial Starks admitted possessing a firearm while on first-offender probation and attempting to buy more-than-one-ounce marijuana; he also testified he shot Charles after being shot himself, asserting self-defense.
- Eyewitness Latasha Davis testified about the sequence of events; the State sought to play her 2013 police statement but the court initially barred it as an improper prior consistent statement. The State then recalled Davis for rebuttal and elicited testimony referring to her earlier statement; defense counsel did not object to parts of that rebuttal testimony.
- During closing the prosecutor argued that the only reason for trial was Starks’s plea of not guilty and suggested defendants may “roll the dice” by going to trial; the court instructed the jury that closing arguments are not evidence.
- Starks was convicted of felony murder (predicated on possession of a firearm by a first-offender probationer) and other counts, and sentenced to life. He moved for a new trial claiming ineffective assistance of counsel for failing to object to (1) Davis’s rebuttal testimony as an improper prior consistent statement and (2) portions of the prosecutor’s closing argument.
- The Supreme Court of Georgia assumed arguendo counsel’s failures were deficient but held Starks could not show Strickland prejudice given overwhelming evidence of guilt (including Starks’s own admissions), so the trial court’s denial of a new trial was affirmed.
Issues
| Issue | Starks’s Argument | State’s Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1) Failure to object to parts of Davis’s rebuttal testimony as improper prior consistent statement | Trial counsel was ineffective for not objecting; Davis’s rebuttal testimony improperly bolstered credibility | Even if counsel erred, any bolstering was not prejudicial given overwhelming evidence including Starks’s admissions | No reversible prejudice; conviction stands |
| 2) Failure to object to prosecutor’s closing argument as disparaging defendant’s right to trial | Trial counsel was ineffective for not objecting; prosecutor improperly commented on exercise of right to trial | Even if improper, any error was harmless because evidence was overwhelming and jury was instructed closings aren’t evidence | No reversible prejudice; conviction stands |
Key Cases Cited
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (legal sufficiency standard for conviction)
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (ineffective assistance two-prong test — performance and prejudice)
- Harris v. State, 291 Ga. 175 (felon’s firearm possession creates foreseeable risk of death)
- Davis v. State, 290 Ga. 757 (illegal drug transactions with armed participants as predicate for felony murder)
- Watson v. State, 303 Ga. 758 (failure to object to testimony harmless where evidence of felony murder overwhelming)
- Muse v. State, 293 Ga. 647 (no prejudice from failure to object where State’s case did not depend on the challenged testimony)