Appellant Jennifer Renay McLeod was convicted for the murders of Harold Reese, Jr., and Jerry Lee Lawrence, along with related crimes.1 Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict, it shows appellant effectively served as “bait” to entice a person she believed to be a drug dealer who carried money on him to come to her home on the pretext of having a sexual encounter. In fact, she was setting him up to be robbed by her two co-conspirators–her live-in boyfriend Amin Dennis, and Amin’s brother, Corey Dennis.
On the evening of August 25, 2009, appellant and the two Dennis brothers drove to a gas station where they noticed Reese. Believing that Reese was a drug dealer who had money, they agreed to rob him. At the gas station, appellant spoke to Reese and obtained his phone number. The trio agreed to a plan by which appellant would call Reese to entice him to come to her residence, and when Reese arrived Amin and Corey would rob him. After appellant called Reese several times and Reese stated he was coming to appellant’s home, Amin and Corey hid in the back of the home, where Amin was armed with a .380 semiautomatic pistol and a .38 snub-nosed revolver, and Corey was armed with a .22 handgun. Once Reese arrived at the house, appellant signaled Amin and Corey and they came out from their hiding place and subdued Reese, binding his wrists and ankles with black zipties, and placing duct tape around his mouth and neck. While doing this, the brothers wore latex gloves. As appellant sat nearby, the brothers took approximately $1,500 from Reese, along with marijuana, a cell phone, and keys. Amin went to Reese’s vehicle which was parked outside the residence and removed certain electronics. Upon entering the vehicle, they discovered Lawrence, who was so intoxicated that he did not require restraint.