JIVENS v. THE STATE
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In this case, Laquan Hasuan Jivens was convicted for malice murder and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony in connection with the shooting death of Kathy Henry. Jivens appealed, arguing that the trial court erred by failing to instruct the jury on the lesser offense of voluntary manslaughter, admitting photographs of model firearms and of Jivens with firearms, denying his motion for mistrial after the State elicited testimony of his potential gang affiliation, granting the State’s motion in limine excluding evidence of Henry’s drug use, and denying his motion for mistrial based on the State’s allegedly improper closing arguments.
The Supreme Court of Georgia affirmed the convictions. The Court held that the trial court did not err in failing to give a voluntary manslaughter charge because the evidence did not support such a charge. The court also concluded that it is highly probable that any error in admitting the firearm-related photographs did not contribute to the verdict. The court found that Jivens did not preserve for appellate review the issue related to evidence of gang affiliation. The court held that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in excluding evidence of Henry’s drug use, and that Jivens waived any objection to the State’s alleged improper arguments.
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