International Criminal Court Lacks Authority to Proceed Against Israel

SAMUEL ESTREICHER, GEORGE BOGDEN

NYU law professor Samuel Estreicher and JD candidate George Bogden, PhD, comment on a recent filing by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) asking the court to exercise jurisdiction and grant permission to pursue an investigation of alleged war crimes in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Estreicher and Bogden argue that because Israel is not a state party to the action and Palestine is not a state recognized by international law, the ICC lacks territorial jurisdiction under the Rome Statute.

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Bundel v. Georgia

Docket: S20A0173

Opinion Date: March 13, 2020

Judge: Peterson

Areas of Law: Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

Rosano Bundel appealed his convictions for malice murder and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony in connection with the 2011 shooting death of George Tabetando. Bundel argued that the weight of the evidence did not support his convictions and that the trial court erred in denying his motion for a new trial without conducting a hearing. Finding the evidence entered into the trial court record sufficient to support Bundel's conviction, the Georgia Supreme Court affirmed. Furthermore, the Court determined Bundel's second claim was also without merit because a trial court is required to hold a hearing on a motion for new trial only when one is requested, and Bundel did not do so.

Corley v. Georgia

Docket: S20A0214

Opinion Date: March 13, 2020

Judge: Keith R. Blackwell

Areas of Law: Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

Vivian Corley was conned by jury of murder, aggravated assault, and the unlawful possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony in connection with the fatal shooting of Lorraine Manuel. Corley appealed, claiming that the evidence was insufficient to support her convictions, that she previously had been acquitted of murder with malice aforethought and could not be retried for that crime, that the trial court erred when it excluded certain evidence, and that the prosecuting attorney made improper comments to the jury. Upon review of the record and briefs, the Georgia Supreme Court found no reversible error related to these claims. The Court did note, however, that the trial court erred when it failed to merge the aggravated assault into the murder. The Court therefore vacated the conviction and sentence for aggravated assault, but otherwise affirmed.

Georgia v. Goff

Docket: S20A0248

Opinion Date: March 13, 2020

Judge: Peterson

Areas of Law: Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

Todd Goff was convicted of malice murder for killing his girlfriend, Tiffany Salter. The trial court granted Goff a new trial on the basis that his trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance by: (1) advising Goff not to testify; (2) failing to move for a mistrial after the jury heard that Goff was on probation; and (3) failing to introduce Goff’s booking photos. The State appealed. Because the trial court erred in finding that Goff’s trial counsel performed deficiently in any of these respects, the Georgia Supreme Court reversed.

Glenn v. Georgia

Docket: S20A0058

Opinion Date: March 13, 2020

Judge: Harold D. Melton

Areas of Law: Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

Demarquis Glenn was convicted by jury for the murder of Quantieria Knight, and possessing a firearm during the commission of a felony. On appeal, Glenn argued the trial court abused its discretion when it denied his motion to suppress certain evidence. Finding n reversible error, the Georgia Supreme Court affirmed conviction.

Jones v. Georgia

Docket: S20A0372

Opinion Date: March 13, 2020

Judge: Peterson

Areas of Law: Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

Tracy Jones, who pleaded guilty to murder and other offenses, filed a motion for out-of-time appeal, claiming that her plea counsel abandoned her after sentencing and that her right to appeal was thereby frustrated. The trial court denied Jones’s motion on the basis that she did not allege that her failure to file a timely appeal was due to ineffective assistance of counsel. But the Georgia Supreme Court concluded, after review of the trial court record, that she did sufficiently state such an allegation in her pro se motion, so the Court vacated and remanded for a hearing as to whether counsel’s ineffectiveness in fact frustrated her right to appeal.

Moore v. Georgia

Docket: S20A0115

Opinion Date: March 13, 2020

Judge: Ellington

Areas of Law: Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

Marcus Moore pled guilty to, and was convicted of murder. He moved for an out-of-time appeal. The trial court later sua sponte dismissed Moore’s notice of appeal from the order denying his motion for an out-of-time appeal, based on its determinations that the judgment was not then appealable and that the questions presented had become moot. Moore filed a timely notice of appeal of the dismissal order. Because trial courts are not authorized to dismiss appeals for the reasons given in the dismissal order, the Georgia Supreme Court reversed that order. And because the record reflected that the trial court failed to conduct a factual inquiry into the allegations in Moore’s motion for an out-of- time appeal, as required under the circumstances, the Supreme Court vacated the order denying his motion for an out-of-time appeal and remanded to the trial court for consideration of the merits of the motion.

Simmons v. Georgia

Docket: S20A0232

Opinion Date: March 13, 2020

Judge: Harold D. Melton

Areas of Law: Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

Eric Simmons was convicted by jury for murder and the possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. Simmons argued the evidence presented at trial was insufficient to support his convictions and that the trial court erred by not granting his motion for a mistrial following “emotional outbursts” from the victim’s family and friends. Finding no reversible error, the Georgia Supreme Court affirmed Simmons' convictions and sentence.

Wilson v. Georgia

Docket: S20A0027

Opinion Date: March 13, 2020

Judge: Ellington

Areas of Law: Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

Robert Wilson was convicted by jury for the murder of his infant son. As appeal. He challenged the sufficiency of the evidence, specifically that the evidence presented against him was entirely circumstantial, and that the evidence did not exclude his reasonable hypothesis that the victim's mother fatally injured their son. After review of the trial court record, the Georgia Supreme Court disagreed and affirmed conviction.