A jury found Orenda Odom guilty on one count each of aggravated assault upon a police officer, obstruction, possession of cocaine, possession of marijuana, and carrying a concealed weapon, and three counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime. Following the denial of his motion for new trial, Odom appeals, asserting that he was denied effective assistance of counsel on several grounds. We affirm. Construing the evidence as we must in favor of the verdict, the record reveals that around 11:00 p.m., plain-clothed and uniformed officers were en route to a convenience store because of complaints of loitering and prowling in the area. When officers arrived, they noticed a man loitering in the front of the store. While three uniformed officers approached the man, a fourth officer, Officer Pippen, wearing plain clothes and a badge around his neck, observed Odom come around the corner of the building. Pippen testified that when Odom saw the other uniformed officers, he pulled his baseball cap down over his eyes, “he had his left hand stuck in his pocket, and he motioned with his mouth. I could read his lips, oh, sh. And he turned. And as he turned, before I could say anything to him, he was gone.” Pippen testified further that he followed Odom and “yelled to him Savannah Chatham Metro Police, sir, come here. Odom turned around, and I know he made eye contact. He looked right at me. Saw the badge, gone. Took off running.”
Pippen chased Odom through some apartment buildings while yelling for Odom to “stop.” During the chase and as Odom was nearing a fence, Odom pulled out a “stainless steel weapon” and pointed it at Pippen. Pippen ordered Odom to put down the weapon. He testified that Odom was “shaking, and he’s shaking. I don’t know if he’s trying to pull the trigger. I don’t know what.” Odom then tossed the gun aside and fled toward a wood line. Pippen landed on top of Odom who was “squirming around . . . . And then he’s digging in the dirt with his left hand. He’s just digging. I’m trying to hold him, and the whole time I’m yelling stop resisting, stop resisting.” At that moment, a second officer arrived and assisted in subduing and handcuffing Odom. The loaded and cocked gun was located inches from where Pippen saw Odom toss it. Officers also discovered some crack cocaine in the spot where Odom was digging in the ground, and marijuana in a place where Odom’s hat fell during the chase.
