1 On August 2 3, 2011, Wash ington was i ndicted for mali ce m urder, f elony mur der, aggrava

ted bat tery, possessi on of a firearm during thecomm

ission of a crime, and posse ssion of

a firearm by a convicted felon . Following a jury trial on January

9-12, 2012, Washington was found guiltyof all counts , and she was sentenced to life impris onment for malice m

urder wi th five c onse cutive year s for possessio n of a firearm duri ng the commissio n of a cr ime a nd five concurr ent

year s for possessi on of a firearm

by a c onvicte d felon. On Februa ry 23, 2012, Washin gton file d a mot ion for new

trial, and she a

mende d it on Februar y15, 2013. A fter the

motion wa s denie d on Marc h 11, 2013, Washingt on filed a

time ly notic e of appe al. He r appeal was docketed to the April 2014 t erm of

this Court

and submitted fo r decis ion on the b riefs. 295 Ga. 209 FINAL C OPY
S14A059 6. WASHINGTON v. THE STATE. MELTON, Justice. Following

a jury trial, Judy Ly

nn Washingt on appeals the verdict finding herguil ty of m alice

murde r, felo ny murder, aggravat ed batt ery, possessio n of
a firea rm durin g the co mmi ssion of a c rime, and possessi on of a firearm by a
conv icted felon. 1 Washingt on conte nds that t he evide nce wa s insuffic ient

t o supp ort th e verdi ct. For the reas ons s et for th bel ow, we aff irm. In the light

most fa vo rable t o the verdic t, the record sh ows that , on the evening of July 29, 2011 , Washingt on and Ste ve Mike l, who w as whe elchairbound, got into a

heate d argum ent. A ccordin g to an e yewit ness, at one point,2

Mikel held Wa shington in a headloc k and

hit her repeatedly. During this altercation , Washingt on threatened Mikel, telling him that she w ould have sho t him if she had a gu n. In t he same place on the following evening, according to eyew itness Gwen Harris, who k new both Wash ington and Mikel, Mikel rolled towards Washingt on and at tempt ed to pic k up her purs e. Mike l was not arme d, and he was attem

pt ing to ap ologize to Washington about the prior fight. W ashington

instruct ed Mike l to put dow n her purse . When he

did not , Washingt on pulled out a handgun and shot Mikel. After Mike l fell out of his wheel chair, Washingt on shot him four mor e tim es. Washing ton then walk ed awayand disc arded t

he gun in the hedges of

a nea rby ya rd. The gun w as found in proximity to a so ck converted in to a hand glo ve, which testimony sh owed
was often used b y Washington to conceal a hand defo rmity. Police apprehen ded Washingt on a short t

ime l ater. This evidence was ample to enab le the jury to fi

nd Washington guilty

of all the crimes fo r which s he had be en cha rg ed. Jackson

v . Virginia , 443 U. S. 307 (99 SCt 2781, 61 LE2d 560) (1979). The jury was authorize d to rejec t the claim of self- defense

and conc lude tha

t Washi ngton s hot Mikel repeatedly without pr ovocation. Hall v. State , 264 Ga . 85 (1) (441 SE2d 245) (19 94).3

Judgme nt affir

med. All the

Justice s concur .

Decid ed May

19, 2014. Murder. Richm ond Superio r Court. Before Judge Rop er. Sara E . Mey ers , for appellant. Ashley Wright, District Attor ney, Madonna M. Little, As sistant Distr ict Attorney, Samuel S. Olens, Attor ney General, Patricia B. Attaway Burton, Deputy Attorne y General, Pa

ula K. Smith, Senior

Assistant Attorney General, Christian A. Fu ller, Assistant Attorney General , for appellee.