Hooks v. State
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Kiervon Armani Hooks was convicted of felony murder and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, both charges stemming from the shooting death of Brandon Ray Foster. The incident occurred on September 26, 2017, and Hooks was indicted on December 18, 2017. The jury found Hooks guilty of all counts during a trial held from February 4-6, 2019. He was sentenced to life without parole for felony murder and an additional five years for possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. Hooks filed a motion for a new trial, which was denied by the trial court.
Hooks appealed his conviction, arguing that the evidence was insufficient to sustain his convictions as no physical evidence or eyewitness testimony linked him to the crime scene. He also argued that the State did not present enough evidence to exclude the possibility that someone else shot Foster. However, the Supreme Court of Georgia affirmed his convictions.
The court found that the evidence was constitutionally sufficient to uphold the convictions. The evidence included Foster's statement that "Buddha" shot him, with multiple witnesses identifying Hooks as the only person they knew by that nickname. Additionally, a .40-caliber shell casing was found near the building where Hooks was staying, and Hooks admitted to being in the building except for when he stepped out to smoke a cigarette. The court concluded that this evidence, viewed in the light most favorable to the verdicts, authorized the jury to find Hooks guilty of the felony murder of Foster and possession of a firearm during the commission of that crime.
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