Reeves v. State

Summary

The Supreme Court of Georgia affirmed Robert Lee Reeves Jr.'s conviction and life sentence for felony murder predicated on aggravated assault. The court held that the evidence was legally sufficient and that evidence of Reeves's prior attempted rape was properly admitted as a similar transaction.

Holdings

1. The evidence was sufficient to authorize the jury to find that the State excluded every reasonable hypothesis except Reeves's guilt and to find him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
2. The trial court did not abuse its discretion by admitting evidence of Reeves's 1998 attempted rape conviction as a similar transaction.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the evidence was legally sufficient to support Reeves's felony-murder conviction where he argued that his DNA could have resulted from consensual sex and that another person committed the killing.
2. Whether the trial court abused its discretion by admitting evidence of Reeves's prior attempted rape as a similar transaction.

Disposition

affirmed