Mathis v. State

The trial court did not err in allowing the victim's friend to testify under the necessity exception to the hearsay rule about the victim's statement regarding threats he received from the defendant prior to the shooting.

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Appellant Paul Mathis was convicted of malice murder and related offenses in connection with the 2006 shooting death of Jurell Williams. Appellant appeals the denial of his motion for new trial, asserting evidentiary errors and ineffectiveness of trial counsel. 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 the evening of October 18, 2006, Jurell Williams was shot to death in the parking lot of the Park at Greenbriar apartment complex in Southwest Atlanta. The sole known eyewitness to the shooting, Larry Foster, testified that he and Williams, a friend of his who sold marijuana in the apartment parking lot, were in the parking lot on the evening of the shooting. Foster saw Appellant, whom Foster knew from the neighborhood, approach Williams, and say “where is the money at” to which Williams replied, “I don’t got none.” Appellant struck Williams in the face, knocking him to the ground, and then shot Williams. Foster further testified that co-defendant Bryant approached during the altercation and, after Williams was shot, helped Appellant search Williams’ clothing. After the shooting, both men drove away in a red car, which Foster testified he believed was Bryant’s wife’s car. At the crime scene, Foster identified the shooters to police as “Payday” and “Ray-Ray” or “Billy Ray,” and later that evening as “Paul” and “Ray.” Approximately one week later, Foster gave a formal statement to police, providing physical descriptions of both men and identifying both in photo line-ups. Trial testimony established that Appellant’s nickname was “Payday” and that Bryant’s was “Ray-Ray.”

Mathis v. State

The trial court did not err in allowing the victim's friend to testify under the necessity exception to the hearsay rule about the victim's statement regarding threats he received from the defendant prior to the shooting.

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