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Mustafa
Askia RAHEEM
Riverdale man gets death in double
murder case
Will Anderson - AccessAtalanta.com
February 21, 2001
A Riverdale man was sentenced to die for the 1999
murders of a mother and her teenage son. Superior Court Judge Hal Craig
imposed the death penalty against Mustafa Raheem, 21, on recommendation
from the Henry County jury that heard the case.
Raheem also received consecutive life prison
sentences for two counts of armed robbery and a 20-year prison sentence
for burglary. Raheem was found guilty of shooting to death Miriam Diane
Hollis and 19-year-old Brandon Jamal Hollis on Good Friday 1999.
Supreme Court of Georgia
RAHEEM v. The STATE
No. S02P0112.
March 11, 200
Crumbley & Crumbley, Wad M. Crumbley, McDonough, for appellant.Tommy
K. Floyd, Dist. Atty., James L. Wright, III, Blair D. Mahaffey, Asst.
Dist. Attys., McDonough, Thurbert E. Baker, Atty. Gen., Romin Alavi,
Asst. Atty. Gen., for appellee.
Mustafa Askia Raheem was convicted on two counts of malice murder,
four counts of felony murder, two counts of armed robbery, and one count
of burglary.1
The jury fixed the sentence for the malice murder of the first victim,
Brandon Hollis, at life imprisonment without parole, after finding
beyond a reasonable doubt that the murder was committed for the purpose
of receiving things of monetary value. See OCGA § 17-10-30(b)(4).
The jury fixed the sentence for the malice murder of the second victim,
Miriam Hollis, at death, after finding beyond a reasonable doubt that
her murder was committed during the commission of the murder of Brandon
Hollis, during the commission of a burglary, during the commission of an
armed robbery, and for the purpose of receiving things of monetary value.
See OCGA § 17-10-30(b)(2) and (4). For the reasons that follow,
Raheem's convictions and sentences are affirmed.
1. The evidence adduced at the guilt/innocence phase of Raheem's
trial showed the following. On April 2, 1999, Raheem picked up Michael
Jenkins and Dione Feltus in Raheem's girlfriend's blue Honda automobile.
Raheem dropped Mr. Feltus off at his place of employment at 4:00 p.m.,
where, according to the testimony of Mr. Feltus's manager, Mr. Feltus
remained until 10:00 p.m. Raheem told Jenkins that he wanted to shoot
his .380 caliber handgun. He then shot the handgun out the window of
the blue Honda, explaining to Jenkins that he wanted to make sure the
weapon would not jam. Raheem purchased black plastic trash bags at a
grocery store and called Brandon Hollis from a nearby payphone. Raheem
picked up Brandon Hollis and then drove Brandon Hollis and Jenkins to a
remote location, where Raheem fired his .380 caliber handgun in the
direction of a tree and handed the handgun to Jenkins. After Brandon
Hollis said the handgun was too loud, Raheem took the handgun from
Jenkins and began walking toward the blue Honda. As Jenkins walked
some distance behind Raheem and Brandon Hollis, Raheem shot Brandon
Hollis in the head. Jenkins inquired whether Brandon Hollis was dead,
and Raheem replied, “ No, but he is on his way out.” Raheem then took
Brandon Hollis's watch and commented to the dying man, “I guess you
ain't going to be needing this watch no more.” Raheem also took
Brandon Hollis's keys and commented to Jenkins, “ I'm glad you didn't
run.”
After killing Brandon Hollis, Raheem drove himself and Jenkins to the
home of Miriam Hollis, Brandon Hollis's mother. Raheem opened Ms.
Hollis's door with Brandon Hollis's key and instructed Jenkins to bring
a trash bag into the home. Ms. Hollis stood to her feet as Raheem and
Jenkins entered her home, and Raheem fired a shot at her but missed her.
Raheem then ordered Ms. Hollis to her hands and knees and shot her in
the head. Raheem placed the trash bag over Ms. Hollis's head, got Ms.
Hollis's keys from her kitchen, placed Ms. Hollis's body in the trunk of
her white Lexus automobile, and then attempted to mop up Ms. Hollis's
blood inside the home. Raheem told Jenkins later that he previously
had given Ms. Hollis money for the Lexus automobile but that she had
refused to give the automobile to him.
Raheem drove with Jenkins in Ms. Hollis's Lexus to visit Raheem's
girlfriend, Veronica Gibbs. Raheem boasted that he had a new
automobile, opened the trunk to show Gibbs Ms. Hollis's body, and
informed Gibbs that he had shot the woman and a young man. Later,
Raheem drove back to Ms. Hollis's home with Jenkins and Gibbs, where
they burglarized the home, stole a number of items, and retrieved
Gibbs's blue Honda. Later, Raheem changed his shoes, which had blood
on them, and drove with Jenkins to dispose of Ms. Hollis's body. The
body was placed underneath planks and tires, doused with a flammable
liquid, and set ablaze.
Viewed in the light most favorable to the guilt/innocence phase
verdicts, the evidence adduced at the guilt/innocence phase was
sufficient to enable a rational trier of fact to find beyond a
reasonable doubt that Raheem was guilty of the crimes of which he was
convicted. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d
560 (1979).
Pretrial Issues
2. Raheem contends that the trial court erred by overruling his
demurrer to counts four and six of his indictment. Those counts
charged Raheem with felony murder, alleging that Raheem “did ․
unlawfully while in the commission of a felony, to wit: Possession of a
Firearm by a Convicted Felon, cause the death of [the victims] by
shooting [them] with a gun, contrary to the laws of [the] State․” Raheem
correctly argues that possession of a firearm by a convicted felon can
serve as the underlying felony in a felony murder charge only where the
possession of the firearm was somehow “ inherently dangerous.” See
Ford v. State, 262 Ga. 602-604(1), 423 S.E.2d 255 (1992) (holding that
an accidental shooting of an unanticipated victim by a convicted felon
while the felon was unloading a firearm in his apartment could not
support a felony murder conviction); compare, e.g., Hulme v. State, 273
Ga. 676, 677-679(1), 544 S.E.2d 138 (2001) (holding that a violation of
the controlled substances statute was, under the particular facts shown
by the evidence at trial, “inherently dangerous to human life”).
Raheem does not contend that the possession of the firearm in his case
was not shown at trial to be inherently dangerous, but he argues that,
because the contested counts of his indictment did not specify how or
why the possession of the firearm was necessarily inherently dangerous
to the victims, those counts failed to satisfy the requirement that a
charge in an indictment be “wholly complete within itself, and plainly,
fully, and distinctly set out the crime charged in that count.” Smith
v. Hardrick, 266 Ga. 54, 55(1), 464 S.E.2d 198 (1995). This contention
is moot in light of the trial court's vacating Raheem's felony murder
convictions. Laney v. State, 271 Ga. 194, 195(2), 515 S.E.2d 610
(1999). Furthermore, Raheem's argument is without merit. OCGA
§ 17-7-54 provides that “[e]very indictment of the grand jury which
states the offense in the terms and language of this Code or so plainly
that the nature of the offense charged may easily be understood by the
jury shall be deemed sufficiently technical and correct.” An
indictment that tracks the language of the Code and can be “clearly and
easily understood” has been held to be sufficient. Burgeson v. State,
267 Ga. 102, 103(1), 475 S.E.2d 580 (1996); compare Langston v. State,
109 Ga. 153, 35 S.E. 166 (1899) (reversing where indictment, although
pled in language of the Code, was inadequate to give “reasonable notice”
to the defendant of what he was “called upon to meet”); Kyler v. State,
94 Ga.App. 321, 323-324(3), 94 S.E.2d 429 (1956) (noting that an
indictment pled in the language of the Code might be insufficient if it
fails to inform the defendant of “enough of the particular facts
constituting the alleged offense to be able to prepare for trial”).
Here, Raheem's indictment was pled in the “terms and language” of the
Code and was fully sufficient to place him on notice of the issues to be
decided and to allow him an opportunity to prepare his defense,
including the opportunity to present evidence that the possession of the
firearm was not inherently dangerous so that any conviction for felony
murder based on the possession of the firearm could be challenged on
appeal. Further specificity in the indictment was not required.
3. Because this Court has directed that all executions in Georgia be
carried out by lethal injection, Raheem's argument that the trial court
erred by refusing to declare execution by electrocution unconstitutional
is moot. See Dawson v. State, 274 Ga. 327, 328, 554 S.E.2d 137 (2001).
Voir Dire
4. At the conclusion of voir dire, Raheem challenged the State's use
of its peremptory strikes, alleging that the State had engaged in race
discrimination in violation of Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79, 106 S.Ct.
1712, 90 L.Ed.2d 69 (1986). Because the trial court directed the State
to put forward race-neutral reasons for its strikes, the question of
whether a prima facie case of discrimination was shown is moot, and the
State's proffered reasons should be examined. Barnes v. State, 269 Ga.
345, 349(6), 496 S.E.2d 674 (1998) (citing Hernandez v. New York, 500
U.S. 352, 359, 111 S.Ct. 1859, 114 L.Ed.2d 395 (1991)). Raheem
concedes that the State's proffered reasons were sufficient to
demonstrate a lack of discriminatory intent as to all but one of the
stricken prospective jurors, juror Smith. With regard to juror Smith,
the prosecutor explained that, upon learning in voir dire where the
juror attended church, the prosecutor had inquired of members of that
church and had received reports that the juror “was odd, that he was
strange, that he exhibited some weird personality traits, [and that the
church members] wouldn't put him on any kind of a jury.” The
prosecutor also explained, and the trial court confirmed on the record,
that juror Smith had exhibited difficulty hearing in court. There is
no merit to Raheem's contentions that the State's proffered reasons
relied upon racial stereotypes or were too vague. See Barnes, 269 Ga.
at 349(6), 496 S.E.2d 674; Turner v. State, 267 Ga. 149, 151(2), 476
S.E.2d 252 (1996) (citing Purkett v. Elem, 514 U.S. 765, 115 S.Ct. 1769,
131 L.Ed.2d 834 (1995)). This Court concludes that the trial court's
finding that Raheem failed to carry his burden of persuasion in showing
that the State had engaged in race discrimination was not clearly
erroneous. Barnes, 269 Ga. at 349(6), 496 S.E.2d 674.
5. (a) A prospective juror who would not be able or willing to
consider the sentence of life with the possibility of parole upon a
conviction for murder is biased in a manner that would make him or her
unqualified to serve. Rhode v. State, 274 Ga. 377, 380(6), 552 S.E.2d
855 (2001) (“[W]here a prospective juror is unable or unwilling, for any
reason, to consider one or more of the sentences authorized by law, that
juror should be excused for cause upon motion by one of the parties.”);
see Zellmer v. State, 272 Ga. 735, 534 S.E.2d 802 (2000). The proper
standard by which a trial court should examine such potential bias is
whether the prospective juror's views would prevent or substantially
impair the performance of the juror's duties in accordance with his or
her instructions and oath; a trial court's findings with regard to that
standard will be afforded due deference on appeal. See Greene v. State,
268 Ga. 47, 48, 485 S.E.2d 741 (1997) (addressing challenged prospective
jurors who expressed hesitation about ability or willingness to consider
a sentence less than death).
(b) Raheem contends that the trial court erred by refusing to excuse
prospective jurors Maxey-Jolley and Brannon on grounds that the jurors
allegedly were unable or unwilling to consider a sentence of life with
the possibility of parole upon a conviction for murder. Viewing each
challenged juror's voir dire as a whole, this Court concludes that the
trial court did not abuse its discretion in finding the jurors qualified
to serve. Id.
6. Raheem contends that prospective juror Maxey-Jolley was further
shown to be unqualified to serve by her voir dire responses regarding
her friend who had been murdered and regarding the friend's murderer who,
after being sentenced and imprisoned, had stabbed a prison guard and had
himself been killed in an attempted escape. Given the juror's
responses, viewed as a whole, the trial court did not abuse its
discretion in finding that the juror would remain impartial despite her
past experience and her honestly expressed concerns about the possible
impact of that past experience upon her deliberations. See Johnson v.
State, 262 Ga. 652, 652-653(2), 424 S.E.2d 271 (1993).
Guilt/Innocence Phase
7. During the guilt/innocence phase, the State presented the
testimony of Michael Jenkins, who claimed that he and Raheem had been
present at both killings but that Raheem had been the triggerman. The
State also presented Raheem's videotaped statement, wherein Raheem
admitted being present at both killings but denied being the triggerman.
At the conclusion of the guilt/innocence phase, the district attorney
made reference to the evidence as follows: “[Y]ou remember Michael
Jenkins' testimony, and Mustafa Raheem didn't take the stand but you
heard his video taped statement. And I submit to you that it ain't true.”
Raheem moved for a mistrial, on the ground that the district attorney
had made a comment upon Raheem's silence at trial, and argued that a
curative instruction would not cure the harm allegedly done by the
comment. The trial court, which was not urged to do so by Raheem, did
not give a curative instruction, however, the trial court did give the
following charge to the jury at the conclusion of the parties' closing
arguments:
[T]he defendant in a criminal case is under no duty to produce any
evidence tending to prove innocence and is not required to take the
stand and testify in the case. If the defendant elects not to testify,
no inference hurtful, harmful, or adverse to the defendant shall be
drawn by the jury, nor shall such fact be held against the defendant in
any way.
As a rule of both constitutional law and Georgia statutory law, a
prosecutor may not make any comment upon a criminal defendant's failure
to testify at trial. Griffin v. California, 380 U.S. 609, 615, 85 S.Ct.
1229, 14 L.Ed.2d 106 (1965); OCGA § 24-9-20(b). This rule ensures
that the State does not impose “a penalty” for or make “costly” the
exercise of the constitutional right to remain silent. 380 U.S. at 614,
85 S.Ct. 1229. This Court concludes that this constitutional and
statutory rule was violated in this case. See Drake v. State, 239 Ga.
232, 236-237(3), 236 S.E.2d 748 (1977) (addressing a comment by the
trial court and finding the comment “at worst harmless error” under the
statute); Woodard v. State, 234 Ga. 901, 904-905(7)(a), 218 S.E.2d 629
(1975) (addressing whether a trial court's charging a jury not to hold a
defendant's silence against him constituted impermissible “comment”
under the statute and concluding it did not). Nevertheless, upon
considering the firsthand observation of the trial court that the
comment in question did not appear designed to or likely to urge any
negative inference, the strength of the evidence against the defendant,
the charge given to the jury by the trial court, and the context in
which the comment was made, this Court concludes that the violation here
was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. Chapman v. California, 386 U.S.
18, 87 S.Ct. 824, 17 L.Ed.2d 705 (1967); Hill v. State, 250 Ga. 277,
282-283(4)(a), 295 S.E.2d 518 (1982).
8. After discovering the body of Miriam Hollis, law enforcement
officers followed leads to Raheem's girlfriend, Veronica Gibbs.
Officers interviewed Gibbs at her place of employment. She informed
the officers that Raheem had been staying with her in her apartment,
that Raheem had shown her a woman's body in the trunk of a white Lexus,
that Raheem had admitted shooting the woman and her son, that Raheem had
“brought some stuff” to her apartment from the dead woman's home, and
that the officers could go retrieve the “stuff” from the apartment.
Gibbs traveled with the officers and accompanied them as they entered
her apartment, never withdrawing her consent to the officers' entry.
These facts demonstrate that Gibbs gave consent to the entry into the
apartment and reinforce the uncontested fact that the officers had
probable cause to arrest Raheem. Gibbs's name was the only name on the
lease for the apartment.
A warrant is required for an arrest made inside the arrested person's
residence, absent consent or exigent circumstances. Payton v. New York,
445 U.S. 573, 583, 100 S.Ct. 1371, 63 L.Ed.2d 639 (1980); Thompson v.
State, 248 Ga. 343(1), 285 S.E.2d 685 (1981). However, the warrant
requirement does not apply where entry into the arrested person's
residence is consented to by a third party who shares common authority
over the residence. Illinois v. Rodriguez, 497 U.S. 177, 181(II), 110
S.Ct. 2793, 111 L.Ed.2d 148 (1990). Here, the trial court correctly
found that Gibbs, who had at least common authority over her own
apartment, gave valid consent to the officers to enter. Id. Accordingly,
the trial court did not err by finding Raheem's arrest was lawful under
the Fourth Amendment and by refusing to suppress evidence based on
Raheem's argument to the contrary.
9. During the guilt/innocence phase, Raheem renewed his motion to
suppress a videotaped statement he had given while in custody, arguing
that, assuming he had previously received notice of and had waived his
rights under Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d
694 (1966), the portion of the Miranda notice that referred to the
potential use of any statement against him in court was vitiated when he
allegedly asked if the statement could be used in court and the law
enforcement officers present answered negatively. The argument relied
upon a difficult to understand portion of the videotaped statement,
wherein Raheem asked some question and the law enforcement officers
present responded negatively.
The trial court reviewed the relevant portion of the videotape
several times and heard testimony from the law enforcement officers
present when the videotaped statement was made. Detective Rene Swanson
testified that, prior to the taking of his videotaped statement, Raheem
had been allowed to watch the interview of his girlfriend, Veronica
Gibbs, from a nearby “recording room.” Detective Swanson then
testified that she believed that, in the relevant portion of the
videotaped statement, Raheem asked if there was “anybody in the
recording room.” Sergeant Michael Gaddis also testified that Raheem
had said “something in reference to the recording room” in the relevant
portion of the videotape. Raheem testified that he did not know what
he had said on the videotape, but he denied that he had said anything
about the recording room. The trial court found as follows: “[T]here
is no evidence that whatever inquiry the defendant was making at the
time in question was any inquiry as to whether or not his statement
would be used in court, or a courtroom.”
A trial court's findings of fact with regard to a motion to suppress
are accepted as correct on appeal unless clearly erroneous, except in
cases “where the evidence is uncontroverted and no question regarding
the credibility of witnesses is presented․” Vansant v. State, 264 Ga.
319, 320(1), 443 S.E.2d 474 (1994). Here, the relevant portion of
Raheem's videotaped statement was difficult, if not impossible, to
understand, as is shown by Raheem's failure to understand his own words
after hearing them played repeatedly in the courtroom. Under these
circumstances and given the testimony heard by the trial court, this
Court concludes that the trial court's finding that Raheem had not made
any reference to whether his statement could be used in a courtroom was
not clearly erroneous. Accordingly, Raheem's legal argument premised
on a factual assertion to the contrary must fail.
Sentencing Phase
10. During the sentencing phase, the State objected to the detailed
testimony of a psychiatrist, who had treated Raheem as a child, about
the psychiatrist's efforts to secure further psychiatric treatment for
Raheem in the face of an insurance company's refusal to allow such
treatment. In ruling on the objection, the trial court stated as
follows: “[P]roceed on but let's try to maintain some relevancy to the
testimony. It may be there, I just haven't heard it yet. But it just
seems like we're going into a great deal of detail about it.” Because
Raheem did not move for a mistrial, his complaint regarding the
statement has been waived. Paul v. State, 272 Ga. 845, 848(2), 537 S.E.2d
58 (2000). Furthermore, there was nothing objectionable about this
reasonable statement made by the trial court in ruling on the State's
objection. See McClain v. State, 267 Ga. 378, 384(3)(b)(2), 477 S.E.2d
814 (1996) (“A judge's remarks assigning a reason for a ruling are
neither an improper expression of opinion nor a comment on the evidence.”);
OCGA § 17-8-57.
11. The certified copy of an adjudication against Raheem in a
juvenile proceeding demonstrated sufficiently on its face that it was
entered upon Raheem's free and voluntary admission of guilt before the
juvenile court with the benefit of counsel, and Raheem offered no
evidence in rebuttal. See Waldrip v. State, 267 Ga. 739, 751(21)(b),
482 S.E.2d 299 (1997); Hammond v. State, 260 Ga. 591, 598(7), 398 S.E.2d
168 (1990); see also Nash v. State, 271 Ga. 281, n. 1, 519 S.E.2d 893
(1999) (“Pope 256 Ga. at 209-210(17), 345 S.E.2d 831] remains the
controlling authority as to the admission of guilty pleas in the
sentencing phase of death penalty cases.”); Pope v. State, 256 Ga.
195, 209 210(17), 345 S.E.2d 831 (1986).
Sentence Review
12. The evidence adduced in the two phases of Raheem's trial was
sufficient to enable a rational trier of fact to find beyond a
reasonable doubt the existence of the statutory aggravating
circumstances supporting the death sentence in this case. Jackson, 443
U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560; OCGA § 17-10-35(c)(2).
13. In the sentencing phase, the State presented evidence showing
Raheem had previously carried a weapon on school grounds at age 15 and
had stolen an automobile and fled from police at age 17. The State
also presented evidence showing that Raheem had concealed in his jail
cell several rudimentary weapons and a detailed map of the jail. A
Henry County Police Department officer testified that, in a conversation
initiated by Raheem, Raheem said the following about the murders: “I
had to do what I had to do. It was just business.” That same officer
testified that, on another occasion, Raheem engaged in misconduct in the
jail and then said the following to the officer: “I also know you're a
witness in my case, you little snitch. I'll kill you.” One of
Raheem's fellow inmates at the jail testified that Raheem stated that he
was going to have his girlfriend and the district attorney killed and
that the district attorney “didn't know who he was messing with.” See
Gissendaner v. State, 272 Ga. 704, 717(19)(a), 532 S.E.2d 677 (2000) (noting
that “past conduct and conduct after the crime” are relevant in this
Court's proportionality review).
This Court finds, considering both the crime and the defendant, that
the death penalty in this case was neither excessive nor
disproportionate to the penalties imposed in similar cases in this State.
OCGA § 17-10-35(c)(3). The cases appearing in the Appendix support
this conclusion in that each involved a defendant shown at trial to have
murdered more than one person.
14. This Court finds that the sentence of death in this case was not
imposed under the influence of passion, prejudice, or any other
arbitrary factor. OCGA § 17-10-35(c)(1).
Judgment affirmed.
APPENDIX
Lance v. State, 275 Ga. 11, 560 S.E.2d 663 2002); Lucas v. State,
274 Ga. 640, 555 S.E.2d 440 (2001); Rhode v. State, 274 Ga. 377, 552
S.E.2d 855 (2001); Colwell v. State, 273 Ga. 634, 544 S.E.2d 120
(2001); Heidler v. State, 273 Ga. 54, 537 S.E.2d 44 (2000); Morrow v.
State, 272 Ga. 691, 532 S.E.2d 78 (2000); Pace v. State, 271 Ga. 829,
524 S.E.2d 490 (1999); Palmer v. State, 271 Ga. 234, 517 S.E.2d 502
(1999); Cook v. State, 270 Ga. 820, 514 S.E.2d 657 (1999); Jenkins v.
State, 269 Ga. 282, 498 S.E.2d 502 (1998); DeYoung v. State, 268 Ga.
780, 493 S.E.2d 157 (1997); Raulerson v. State, 268 Ga. 623, 491 S.E.2d
791 (1997); McMichen v. State, 265 Ga. 598, 458 S.E.2d 833 (1995); Stripling
v. State, 261 Ga. 1, 401 S.E.2d 500 (1991); Isaacs v. State, 259 Ga.
717, 386 S.E.2d 316 (1989); Ford v. State, 257 Ga. 461, 360 S.E.2d 258
(1987); Childs v. State, 257 Ga. 243, 357 S.E.2d 48 (1987); Romine v.
State, 256 Ga. 521, 350 S.E.2d 446 (1986); Cargill v. State, 255 Ga.
616, 340 S.E.2d 891 (1986); Blanks v. State, 254 Ga. 420, 330 S.E.2d
575 (1985); Putman v. State, 251 Ga. 605, 308 S.E.2d 145 (1983);
Wilson v. State, 250 Ga. 630, 300 S.E.2d 640 (1983); Rivers v. State,
250 Ga. 303, 298 S.E.2d 1 (1982); Rivers v. State, 250 Ga. 288, 298
S.E.2d 10 (1982); Waters v. State, 248 Ga. 355, 283 S.E.2d 238 (1981).
FOOTNOTES
1. Raheem
was indicted on these charges May 6, 1999, by a Henry County grand jury.
The State filed the first written notice of its intent to seek the
death penalty May 19, 1999. Raheem's trial began February 5, 2001, the
jury found him guilty on all charges February 15, 2001, and the jury
fixed the sentence for the malice murder of Brandon Hollis at life
imprisonment without parole and the sentence for the malice murder of
Miriam Hollis at death February 17, 2001. The trial court properly
vacated the felony murder convictions and imposed the jury's sentences
for the malice murders. See Malcolm v. State, 263 Ga. 369, 371-372(4),
434 S.E.2d 479 (1993); OCGA § 16-1-7(a)(1). The trial court further
imposed consecutive sentences of life imprisonment for each of the two
armed robberies and twenty years for the burglary. Raheem filed a
motion for a new trial March 19, 2001, which the trial court denied in
an order filed August 31, 2001. Raheem filed a notice of appeal
September 28, 2001, and the appeal was docketed in this Court October 9,
2001, and orally argued January 14, 2002.