SCHMITT v. STATE
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Bryan Keith Schmitt was convicted of malice murder for the death of Hamid Jahangard, who died after being hit by Schmitt’s car. Schmitt was indicted on charges of malice murder, two counts of felony murder, and two counts of aggravated assault. The jury found Schmitt guilty on all counts, and he was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. Schmitt appealed, arguing that the trial court erred by denying his request to instruct the jury on the defense of accident.
The Supreme Court of Georgia found that the trial court did err in denying Schmitt's request for an accident defense instruction. The court noted that there was at least slight evidence supporting Schmitt's claim that the collision was an accident, including his own testimony and expert testimony that he veered away from Jahangard before the collision. The court also noted that the trial court's instruction to the jury to disregard accident as a key legal principle was problematic, as it may have led the jury to disregard Schmitt's accident defense.
The court concluded that the trial court's error was not harmless, as the evidence of Schmitt's criminal intent was disputed and not overwhelming. Therefore, the court reversed Schmitt's conviction. The court also found that the trial court erred in declining the accident instruction for the related counts of felony murder and aggravated assault, and reversed those verdicts as well. However, the court noted that the evidence was legally sufficient to sustain Schmitt’s conviction, and so the State may retry him.
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