Georgia CommonsCourt opinions
Georgia Supreme Court decisions with plain-language summaries. Browse by year and case type, or search by case name.
UPSHAW v. THE STATE (Three Cases)
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld the murder, gang, and other convictions of three Columbus men in a fatal 2021 shooting, rejecting challenges to gang-crime evidence, sufficiency of proof, and various evidentiary rulings.
In THE MATTER OF CHRISTOPHER CASEY TAYLOR (Six Cases)
The Supreme Court of Georgia disbarred an immigration lawyer who abandoned clients, failed to communicate with them, and did not supervise the associate attorneys who actually handled their removal cases.
Chestnut Ridge, LLC v. Hall County Board of Tax Assessors
The Supreme Court of Georgia found that a trial court had no authority to rule on a company's claim that a Georgia tax statute was unconstitutionally vague, because the company never notified the Attorney General as required by law.
Dixon v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld Brandi Dixon's felony murder conviction in the stabbing death of Ebony Smith, rejecting her claims that the evidence was insufficient, her lawyer was ineffective, and trial errors required reversal.
Edwards v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia affirmed Jalon Dante Edwards's murder conviction for the shooting death of DeCoby Barlow outside a Henry County nightclub, rejecting challenges to jury instructions, the joint trial with co-defendants, and his lawyer's performance.
Frison v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld Xaiver Frison's murder conviction, ruling that surveillance video contradicting his and his sister's claim that the victim had a gun let the jury reject his self-defense argument.
In the Matter of Je'nita Lane
The Supreme Court of Georgia accepted an attorney's voluntary surrender of her law license, effectively disbarring her, after she admitted mishandling client trust funds in two cases involving overdrawn accounts and an unpaid Medicaid lien.
Johnson v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld a Fulton County man's murder conviction, ruling that the prosecutor's opening statement and closing argument did not require a new trial and that the evidence was enough to convict him.
Lee v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld Kevin Lee's murder conviction for killing his wife Ann Berry in 1991, whose remains were not found until 2011, rejecting challenges to the evidence, a hearsay ruling, a juror swap, and his lawyers' performance.
Lewis v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld George Michael Lewis's murder conviction for shooting Kendra Weathers, rejecting his claims that the evidence was too weak, that a prior fraud offense was wrongly used against him, and that his trial lawyer was ineffective.
Montgomery v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld a Carroll County man's felony murder conviction, rejecting his argument that acquittal on malice murder made a guilty verdict on felony murder illogical or that the jury instructions were flawed.
Montgomery v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld Christie Montgomery's murder conviction for the shooting death of Justice Jackson, ruling that an eyewitness account of the shooting was enough direct evidence to support the verdict.
Moss v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld a Hall County man's conviction for murdering his grandfather and setting the man's house on fire, finding the circumstantial evidence sufficient and ruling text messages were properly admitted at trial.
Norwood v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld a Walton County man's murder conviction and five child cruelty convictions, ruling the evidence was enough to show he caused the children severe fear even though he claimed he did not know they were present.
Saunders v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld a Liberty County man's malice murder conviction, rejecting claims that his trial lawyer was constitutionally deficient and that the trial judge should have granted a new trial based on the weight of the evidence.
State v. PHILLIPS
The Supreme Court of Georgia ruled that a felony charge of violating a police officer's oath of office can support a felony murder charge if the circumstances created a foreseeable risk of death, reversing a trial judge who dismissed that count.
Venticinque v. Lair
The Supreme Court of Georgia sent a custody dispute between a mother and her former partner back to the trial court, ruling that the judge wrongly required the mother to prove her child would be harmed rather than requiring the former partner to prove it.
Westbrook v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld a Chatham County woman's murder conviction for stabbing a man to death, ruling that even if the trial judge should have added more detail to the self-defense instructions, the omission did not affect the verdict.
State v. Greathouse
The Supreme Court of Georgia ruled that a Georgia statute requires a hearing or an admission of guilt before a judge can revoke someone's probation, even if the probationer signed a form waiving that hearing in advance for future violations.
Taylor v. State
The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld Antonio Taylor's malice murder conviction for killing his girlfriend Aisha Dixon, rejecting his challenges to the evidence, venue, Georgia's venue statute, and his life-without-parole sentence.