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Bakerv.State

CourtSupreme Court of Georgia
Docket No.S23A0860
DecidedMarch 5, 2024
Reporter318 Ga. 431; 899 S.E.2d 139; 2024 Ga. LEXIS 64; 2024 LX 22601
JudgesWARREN, Justice. All the Justices concur, except Boggs, C.J., and LaGrua, J., who dissent.
Tags
CriminalMurderEvidenceRule 403Unfair PrejudiceRap-Lyrics-and-Video EvidenceHarmless Error
Case Summary

Morgan Baker was convicted of malice murder after nightclub security guard Tamarco Head was shot following an altercation outside a performance by Baker’s friend, rapper NoCap. The State introduced a 33-second rap-video clip showing Baker waving a handgun, although Baker admitted his friendship and presence at the club and no evidence linked the video gun to the two guns used in the shooting. The only eyewitness who identified Baker as a shooter had earlier said she did not think the light-skinned shooter was firing, and other evidence left questions about the shooters and their getaway. The Supreme Court of Georgia held the clip added little on association, identity, motive, or gun access, while its violent imagery and the prosecutor’s repeated use invited jurors to infer Baker’s propensity for gun violence. Because the prosecutor made the clip a trial focus and the remaining identification evidence was equivocal, the State did not show it was highly probable the error did not affect the verdict; the Court reversed the malice-murder conviction, allowing retrial. Justice LaGrua, joined by Chief Justice Boggs, dissented, viewing the clip as probative of Baker’s familiarity with guns and the remaining evidence as strong enough to make any error harmless.

Opinion

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