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Smith v. State

The defendant failed to prove that his trial counsel was deficient for not asserting a sleepwalking defense after he was convicted of murdering his wife.

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In Smith v. State, 284 Ga. 33 663 SE2d 155 2008, this Court reversed Appellant Tavaris Smith’s murder conviction, finding that the trial court had erred in classifying Smith’s sleepwalking defense as an insanity defense. Id. at 35-36 2. Following retrial, Smith was again convicted of malice murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. Smith now challenges his second conviction on grounds of insufficiency of the evidence, trial counsel ineffectiveness, and errors in evidentiary matters and jury instructions. Finding no error, we affirm.1

1. Viewed in the light most favorable to the verdict, the evidence adduced at trial established as follows. On June 5, 2003, Smith’s wife was killed by a single gunshot to the back of her head while she was asleep in her bed. Smith called 911 at approximately 1:30 a.m. to report the shooting but was not present at their home when emergency responders arrived. At the scene, a .9 mm pistol was discovered under the pillow next to the victim, aimed towards the back of her head. The pillow on which the victim’s head had been resting bore bullet entry and exit holes. A single shell casing was found on the floor near the bed, and the gun had a live round in its chamber.

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