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  • Capote v. The State

    Publication Date: 2024-12-12
    Practice Area: Criminal Appeals
    Industry:
    Court: Georgia Supreme Court
    Judge: Justice Warren
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Brandon A. Bullard, Audra Murphey, (The Bullard Firm, LLC), Atlanta, Bruce Steven Harvey, (Law Offices of Bruce S. Harvey), Atlanta, for appellant.
    for defendant: Patsy A. Austin-Gatson, John Williams, Christopher Mark DeNeve, (Gwinnett County District Attorney’s Office), Lawrenceville, for appellee; Donald Franklin Samuel, (Garland, Samuel & Loeb, P.C.), Atlanta, Ashleigh Bartkus Merchant, (The Merchant Law Firm, P.C.), Marietta, for Amicus Appellant; Christopher M. Carr, Stephen John Petrany, (Department of Law), Atlanta, for Amicus Appellee.
    Case Number: S23G1127

    Court affirms Georgia's deferential "any evidence" standard for trial court findings in criminal appeals

  • Steel v. The State

    Publication Date: 2024-11-22
    Practice Area: Legal Operations
    Industry: Legal Services
    Court: Georgia Supreme Court
    Judge: Presiding Justice Peterson
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Robert Alexander "Alex" Susor, (The Law Offices of Alex Susor, P.C.), Decatur, Colette Resnik Steel, (The Steel Law Firm, P.C.), Atlanta, Lynsey M Barron, (Barron Law LLC), Atlanta, Leigh Ann Webster, (Strickland Webster, LLC), Atlanta, Ashleigh Bartkus Merchant, (The Merchant Law Firm, P.C.), Marietta, for appellant.
    for defendant: Christopher M. Carr, Patricia Beth Attaway Burton, Meghan Hobbs Hill, Clint Christopher Malcolm, (Department of Law), Atlanta, Kevin Christopher Armstrong, Fani T. Willis, (Fulton County District Attorney’s Office), Atlanta, for appellee; Ural D.L. Glanville, (Fulton County Superior Court), Atlanta, for other party; Hunter Joseph Rodgers, Smyrna, Mazie Lynn Guertin, (Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers), Decatur, Greg Allen Willis, Jessica Jones, (Willis Law Firm), Atlanta, Amanda Rourk Clark Palmer, (Garland, Samuel & Loeb P.C.), Atlanta, Edward Donald Tolley, (Cook & Tolley LLP), Athens, Donald Franklin Samuel, (Garland, Samuel & Loeb, P.C.), Atlanta, for Amicus Appellant.
    Case Number: S24A1245

    Court reverses contempt finding against attorney for failure to disclose source of information, citing due process violations and finding that the trial court judge should have recused himself

  • Schmitt v. The State

    Publication Date: 2024-05-27
    Practice Area: Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Georgia Supreme Court
    Judge: Presiding Justice Peterson
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: John Aspinwall Garland, Donald Franklin Samuel, Kristen Wright Novay, (Garland, Samuel & Loeb, P.C.), Atlanta, Matthew Kyle Winchester, (Law Offices of Matthew K. Winchester), Atlanta,for appellant.
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Clint Christopher Malcolm, Meghan Hobbs Hill, Mary Catherine Norman, Elizabeth Haase Brock, Christopher M. Carr, (Department of Law), Atlanta, Fani T. Willis, Kevin Christopher Armstrong, Mario Kladis, (Fulton County District Attorney’s Office), Atlanta, for appellee.
    Case Number: S24A0036

    Court reverses convictions for malice murder and other crimes due to error in failing to instruct the jury on accident as a defense

  • Sconyers v. The State

    Publication Date: 2024-05-27
    Practice Area: Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Georgia Supreme Court
    Judge: Justice Ellington
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Donald Franklin Samuel, (Garland, Samuel & Loeb, P.C.), Atlanta, for appellant.
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Clint Christopher Malcolm, Meghan Hobbs Hill, Matthew Blackwell Crowder, Christopher M. Carr, (Department of Law), Atlanta, Bobby Lee Christine, Kevin Richard Majeska, (Columbia Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office), Evans, for appellee.
    Case Number: S24A0139

    Court affirms convictions in child murder case over defendant's challenges to evidence, jury instructions, and witness impeachment

  • Baker v. The State

    Publication Date: 2024-04-03
    Practice Area: Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Georgia Supreme Court
    Judge: Justice Warren
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Donald Franklin Samuel, (Garland, Samuel & Loeb, P.C.), Atlanta, James Travis Griffin, (Hogue Hogue Fitzgerald & Griffin, LLP), Macon, for appellant.
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Paula Khristian Smith, Christopher M. Carr, Clint Christopher Malcolm, Ashleigh Dene Headrick, (Department of Law), Atlanta, George Herbert Hartwig, Rodrigo L. Silva, William Marshall Kendall, (Houston County District Attorney's Office), Perry, for appellee.
    Case Number: S23A0860

    Court reverses malice murder conviction due to admission into evidence of a rap music video showing the defendant with a gun, which the court deemed to be more prejudicial than probative

  • In the Matter of Claud L. McIver III.

    Publication Date: 2023-05-03
    Practice Area: Legal Ethics and Attorney Discipline
    Industry: Legal Services
    Court: Georgia Supreme Court
    Judge: Per Curiam
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Amanda Rourk Clark Palmer, Donald Franklin Samuel, (Garland, Samuel & Loeb, P.C.), Atlanta, for appellant.
    for defendant: Andreea N. Morrison, Paula J. Frederick, Jenny K. Mittelman, William Dallas NeSmith, (State Bar of Georgia), Atlanta, for appellee.
    Case Number: S23Y0621

    Court accepts attorney's petition to voluntarily surrender his license to practice law in Georgia following his felony conviction for influencing a witness

  • Drennon v. The State

    Publication Date: 2022-11-15
    Practice Area: Constitutional Law | Criminal Appeals | Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Georgia Supreme Court
    Judge: Justice Warren
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Amanda Rourk Clark Palmer, (Garland, Samuel & Loeb P.C.), Atlanta, for appellant.
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Paula Khristian Smith, Christopher M. Carr, Emily Rebecca Polk, (Department of Law), Atlanta, Fani T. Willis, Kevin Christopher Armstrong, Virginia Lee Davis, Elizabeth Rosenwasser, (Fulton County District Attorney’s Office), Atlanta, Leslie Anna Coots, (Cobb County District Attorney’s Office), Marietta, Lyndsey Hurst Rudder, Savannah, for appellee.
    Case Number: S22A0511

    Trial Court Record Not Adequate For Review of Appellant's Claim of Denial of Right to Be Present During All of Trial

  • Talley v. The State

    Publication Date: 2022-07-29
    Practice Area: Constitutional Law | Criminal Law | Evidence
    Industry:
    Court: Georgia Supreme Court
    Judge: Justice Bethel
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Donald Franklin Samuel, (Garland, Samuel & Loeb, P.C.), Atlanta, for appellant.
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Paula Khristian Smith, Christopher M. Carr, Kathleen Leona McCanless, (Department of Law), Atlanta, Fani T. Willis, Kevin Christopher Armstrong, Lyndsey Hurst Rudder, Virginia Lee Davis, (Fulton County District Attorney’s Office), Atlanta, for appellee.
    Case Number: S22A0242

    Court Did Not Err by Admitting Hearsay Statements Murder Victim Had Made Regarding Incidents Involving Defendant Litigation: Yes

  • McIver v. The State

    Publication Date: 2022-07-29
    Practice Area: Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Georgia Supreme Court
    Judge: Presiding Justice Boggs
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Amanda Rourk Clark Palmer, Donald Franklin Samuel, (Garland, Samuel & Loeb P.C.), Atlanta, Bruce Steven Harvey, (Law Offices of Bruce S. Harvey), Atlanta, for appellant.
    for defendant: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Paula Khristian Smith, Christopher M. Carr, (Department of Law), Atlanta, Ruth M. Pawlak, Fani T. Willis, Lyndsey Hurst Rudder, Kevin Christopher Armstrong, (Fulton County District Attorney’s Office), Atlanta, Leslie Anna Coots, (Cobb County District Attorney’s Office), Marietta, for appellee.
    Case Number: S22A0093

    Evidence Supported Instruction on Misdemeanor Unlawful-Manner Involuntary Manslaughter in Case Involving Firearm

  • The State v. Lane

    Publication Date: 2020-03-03
    Practice Area: Criminal Law
    Industry:
    Court: Georgia Supreme Court
    Judge: Justice Peterson
    Attorneys: For plaintiff: Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Paula Khristian Smith, Christopher M. Carr, (Department of Law), Atlanta, Sherry Boston, Destiny H. Bryant, Jason Matthew Rea, (Dekalb County District Attorney's Office), Decatur, for appellant.
    for defendant: Donald Franklin Samuel, (Garland, Samuel & Loeb, P.C.), Atlanta, for appellee.
    Case Number: S19A1424

    Georgia Courts Considering Whether a Criminal Defendant Is Entitled to a New Trial Should Consider the Prejudicial Effect of Trial Court Errors and Deficient Counsel Performance