Grimes v. State

A co-indictee's cellmate's statement to a detective about the details of a fatal shooting, which implicated three of the defendants, was admissible under the co-conspirator exception to the hearsay rule.

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Appellants Jaqwanta Grimes, Brandon Reed, Antoine Willis, and Kyree Brantley appeal their convictions stemming from the shooting death of Marcus Holloway and the aggravated assault of LaQuinton Forte. For reasons set forth herein, we affirm.1 The evidence viewed in a light most favorable to the verdict shows that in January 2011, co-indictee Charles Slaton a.k.a. “Fat” had a dispute with Dwain O’Neal.2 On the afternoon of the shooting, Slaton was visiting the apartment of a woman hereinafter “G.S.” when O’Neal stopped by G.S.’s apartment as well. G.S. testified Slaton hid from O’Neal inside her apartment. After seeing some items of clothing he recognized as belonging to Slaton inside the apartment, including a hat that said “Ho Hater,” O’Neal began looking for Slaton inside the apartment. When he could not find Slaton, O’Neal left the apartment, went to the parking lot and slashed the tires on the car which Slaton was seen driving. O’Neal then went back inside the apartment. Meanwhile, Slaton had called his friends to come get him.

According to co-indictee Lancelot Hicks a.k.a. “Lil’ Lance”, Grimes a.k.a. “Qwan”, Brantley a.k.a. “Corey”, Willis a.k.a. “Nuk” or “Nook”, Reed a.k.a. “White Boy Brandon”, and someone going by the name of “Yams” arrived at the apartment complex in two different vehicles.3 Hicks stayed in the car he was in, but said he saw Reed, Grimes, Willis and Slaton exiting an apartment. He said Reed, Grimes, and Willis were shooting while Slaton took cover behind them. Hicks said Brantley and Yams exited the car and also began shooting. According to G.S., when the shooting started, O’Neal ran out the back of her apartment and, shortly thereafter, Slaton went out the front door.4 O’Neal testified that after going out the back window of G.S.’s apartment, he fled to his grandmother’s apartment which was in a different building of the complex.

Grimes v. State

A co-indictee's cellmate's statement to a detective about the details of a fatal shooting, which implicated three of the defendants, was admissible under the co-conspirator exception to the hearsay rule.

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