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O'Donnell v. Smith

The habeas court erred in considering the affidavit of an alternate juror who replaced another juror during deliberations, as it did not provide evidentiary support for the defendant's ineffective assistance of counsel claim and was used improperly to impeach the jury's verdict.

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The Warden seeks review of the grant of habeas relief to appellee Ryan Allen Smith. The record shows appellee was convicted of malice murder and sentenced to life in prison in 2002.1 This Court affirmed appellee’s conviction in Smith v. Georgia, 277 Ga. 213 586 SE2d 639 2003, cert. denied, 541 U.S. 1032 124 Sct 2101, 158 LE2d 715 2004. Appellee subsequently filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus wherein he alleged that trial/appellate counsel2 was ineffective for failing to challenge the State’s proof of venue, allowing an un-redacted indictment to go out with the jury, and for failing to challenge the seating of an alternate juror. After conducting a hearing, the habeas court granted appellee relief on all of his claims, set aside appellant’s conviction and sentence, and remanded the case to the trial court. For the reasons set forth below, we reverse the habeas court’s decision in its entirety.

The underlying facts are set forth from our opinion in Smith v. State, supra, 277 Ga. at 213-214, as follows:

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