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Garrett v. State

The trial court had no duty to give a sua sponte jury instruction on threats and menaces.

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A jury convicted Michael Garrett of malice murder and related crimes for shooting to death Andre Poole.1 On appeal, Garrett contends that the trial court’s justification charge was inadequate. Because Garrett failed to request a broader charge and the trial court’s instructions to the jury on justification adequately covered the applicable law, we affirm. Taken in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict of guilty, the evidence at trial showed that Garrett had expressed a desire to “get” Poole because he believed that Poole had murdered Garrett’s best friend. On March 22, 2000, Garrett drove into his apartment complex and saw Poole sitting on the back of a parked car listening to music along with several other people. The two men exchanged “cold” stares, and, after Garrett drove by, Poole moved to the passenger seat of the car. Garrett parked his car around the corner, grabbed a gun from under the seat, pushed aside a friend who tried to stop him, ran to within a few feet of Poole and shot him. Poole jumped out of the driver’s side of the car and, with Garrett in pursuit, ran a short ways before collapsing on a nearby sidewalk. Poole died from two gunshot wounds. No weapon was found on Poole or in the car in which he had been sitting.

At trial, Garrett conceded that he had shot Poole, but argued that he suffered from a delusional compulsion that Poole was trying to kill him. According to Garrett, when he saw Poole, he believed that he was facing an imminent attack and shot Poole in self-defense. The jury rejected Garrett’s defense and convicted him on all counts.

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