Thomas v. State

A detective did not impermissible convey his view of the truthfulness of witnesses at trial when he testified that he concluded on the day of the shooting that two witnesses were not involved.

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Tracy Thomas was found guilty in the felony murder of Ronald Howse. He appeals from the denial of his motion for new trial, and we affirm.1 1. Viewed to support the verdict, the evidence at trial established that on April 28, 2001 appellant argued with the victim and thereafter shot him as he was walking toward the kitchen to light his cigarette. Several witnesses, including James Johnson and his nephew, Emanuel Johnson, observed appellant threaten the victim with a .357 Magnum gun before the shooting. After the shooting, witnesses observed appellant wipe off the gun and place it in the dying victim’s hand in an effort to make the homicide look like a suicide. The State presented evidence which established the victim was killed by a single gunshot wound to the side of his head. Based on the position of the victim after he was shot, the fact that the victim was holding an unlit cigarette in the same hand as the gun, and the lack of fingerprints on the gun, the police determined that the shooting was a homicide. The forensic pathologist estimated that the gun was fired from a distance of at least 2 1/2 feet from the victim’s head and concluded that the shooting was a homicide based on the absence of gun shot residue on the victim’s hands and the absence of gunpowder stippling surrounding the entrance wound. Appellant fled the scene immediately after the incident and the fugitive squad apprehended him eight months later.

We conclude that the evidence adduced at trial was sufficient to enable a rational trier of fact to find appellant guilty of the crimes charged beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia , 443 U.S. 307 99 SC 2781, 61 LE2d 560 1979.

Thomas v. State

A detective did not impermissible convey his view of the truthfulness of witnesses at trial when he testified that he concluded on the day of the shooting that two witnesses were not involved.

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