Stephens v. State

The charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon was sufficiently connected to the felony murder to serve as the underlying felony, since the defendant was a convicted felon and he possessed and used a firearm during an altercation, which resulted in the victim's death.

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Jasper Stephens was indicted for malice murder, felony murder with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon as the underlying offense, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, all in connection with the shooting death of Otis Stallion.1 The trial court granted Stephens’s motion to bifurcate the malice murder count from the remainder of the counts predicated upon the status offenses of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The jury found Stephens not guilty of malice murder, but in the succeeding phase of the trial, determined he was guilty of felony murder and the possession charges. He appeals from the denial of his amended motion for new trial. Finding no error, we affirm. The jury was authorized to find that Stephens was at his grandmother’s residence on May Avenue in Macon when a vehicle pulled up to the house. Philip Evans, the victim’s cousin, sat in the driver’s seat, Jarryl Clark in the front seat and the victim, in the back seat. Several eyewitnesses testified that Stephens opened the back door of the car, slapped the victim in the face several times, and demanded the fifteen dollars the victim owed him. Evans gave Stephens a twenty dollar bill and Stephens gave him change. After the exchange of money, Stephens slapped the victim again and told the victim that he was “going to die tonight anyway.” Stephens then leaned in and shot the victim. The victim died from a single gunshot wound to the upper abdomen. There was conflicting testimony as to whether the victim had a gun or appeared to reach for something under the car seat. Stephens testified that during the altercation he shot and killed the victim after the victim reached for a weapon.

1. We conclude there was sufficient evidence from which a rational trier of fact could have found Stephens guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of felony murder and the multiple possession of a firearm charges. Jackson v. Virginia , 443 U.S. 307 99 SC 2781, 61 LE2d 560 1979. Accordingly, the trial court did not err by denying Stephens’s motion for new trial.

Stephens v. State

The charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon was sufficiently connected to the felony murder to serve as the underlying felony, since the defendant was a convicted felon and he possessed and used a firearm during an altercation, which resulted in the victim's death.

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