Myers v. State

Evidence presented by the state regarding the defendant's fugitive status was relevant to prove that he had a motive for fleeing from and eluding police, and was not rendered inadmissible because it incidentally put his character in issue.

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Following a jury trial, Randy Thomas Myers was convicted of aggravated assault, fleeing and attempting to elude police, two counts of obstructing officers, and various traffic offenses. Myers appeals his convictions, contending that 1 the evidence was insufficient as to the aggravated-assault conviction, 2 the counts of aggravated assault and fleeing and attempting to elude were improperly and incompletely alleged in the indictment, and 3 the prosecution improperly and deliberately placed his character at issue. For the reasons noted infra , we affirm. Viewed in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict,1 the record shows that on August 11, 2004, Myers was the subject of a “be on the lookout” issued by the U.S. Marshal Service, which advised law enforcement that Myers was known to be traveling in a green Chevrolet Tahoe. As a result of this BOLO, an officer with the Rome City Police Department —while directing traffic —spotted a green Tahoe and a driver who matched Myers’s description, along with a passenger.

After the officer spotted Myers inside the Tahoe and began to approach, the vehicle pulled out of the traffic, sped directly toward the officer and then away from the scene. At trial, the officer testified that he would have been hit by the Tahoe had he not stepped out of its way and that he and another officer thereafter pursued Myers in a high-speed chase. Although the Tahoe stopped at one point during the pursuit, it sped away again as the officer exited his patrol car and began to approach the vehicle. The chase finally ended when the Tahoe veered off into rough terrain that made it impossible for the patrol cars to follow, and law enforcement subsequently found the vehicle abandoned in the woods.

Myers v. State

Evidence presented by the state regarding the defendant's fugitive status was relevant to prove that he had a motive for fleeing from and eluding police, and was not rendered inadmissible because it incidentally put his character in issue.

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