Evidence Stacks Against Murderer’s Unindicted Conspiracy Charge
Clarke Superior Court convicted a defendant of felony murder and crimes related to a series of burglaries, but the defendant appealed, believing that the evidence was lacking in one burglary charge and that the court mistakenly charged him with conspiracy to burgle.
Georgia’s Court of Appeals reviewed his claims and discovered that the evidence did support the defendant’s convictions. The defendant made statements connecting himself to a murder that occurred after the burglary in question, and a stolen gun in that burglary was used in the murder. The defendant admitted to tossing that gun, and his shoe prints matched impressions taken at the scene of the burglary.
The conspiracy charge arose from evidence supplied by the prosecution, showing that the defendant “was part of a conspiracy to burgle homes over a 2-week period.” The Appeals Court showed that the court was justified in allowing the charge without it having been listed in the indictment because of the ample evidence.
The Appeals Court affirmed the trial court’s ruling and determined that it did not erroneously permit the conspiracy charge.