Allaben v. State

Although the evidence supported the defendant's conviction for malice murder in connection with the strangling death of his wife, the trial court reversibly erred in excluding certain evidence that was admissible under the rule of completeness.

Thank you for sharing!

Your article was successfully shared with the contacts you provided.

On retrial following a reversal of his original convictions, see Allaben v. State, 294 Ga. 315 751 SE2d 802 2013 Allaben I,1 Appellant Dennis Allaben was convicted of malice murder in connection with the strangling death of his wife, Maureen, and he now appeals his conviction on numerous grounds. Though we conclude that the evidence was sufficient to sustain his conviction, we agree with Appellant that the trial court failed to properly apply the rule of completeness and erroneously denied Appellant’s request to instruct the jury on certain lesser-included offenses. Accordingly, we reverse the judgment of the trial court and remand the case for further proceedings.2

Viewed in a light most favorable to the jury’s verdict, the evidence at trial established as follows. In January 2010, Appellant killed his wife. Thereafter, he wrapped her body in a packing blanket and placed it in the bed of his pickup truck; he then used that truck to transport his children to Virginia, the home state of his brother and sister-in-law. During the trip, Appellant admitted to his children and later his sister in law that he had killed his wife. According to Appellant’s sister-in-law, Appellant admitted that he had a cloth with ether on it, which he put over the victim’s mouth, and the cloth went too far down her throat and choked her. The sister-in-law further testified that Appellant stated that he used the ether so the victim could go to sleep because he just wanted to talk to her. After dropping off his children in Virginia, Appellant returned to Georgia and proceeded to the home of Jon Kevin Crane. Once there, Appellant stated that he needed an attorney, admitted that his wife was dead in the bed of his truck, and, eventually, surrendered to authorities. The victim’s body, clothed only in a t-shirt and underwear, was found frozen in the bed of Appellant’s truck.

Allaben v. State

Although the evidence supported the defendant's conviction for malice murder in connection with the strangling death of his wife, the trial court reversibly erred in excluding certain evidence that was admissible under the rule of completeness.

Share with Email

Thank you for sharing!

Trending Stories

More From ALM

Subscribe to Daily Report