Since a jury convicted Jason Anderson, 45, of Douglas, of felony murder, aggravated assault, and making false statements earlier this month in connection to the death of Vann Brown on January 1, 2020, Anderson has hired a new attorney who has wasted no time attempting to secure a new trial for Anderson. Atlanta lawyer Brian Steel is now Anderson’s counsel.
Steel has already filed several motions, at least one of which is null and void (this writer’s words, not the court’s) due to the timing of its filing, while the other is still pending. The first motion is a 22-page document that contains an affidavit from a juror who says she was bullied into voting for a guilty verdict by another juror. The juror also states that during deliberations, the juror who bullied her discussed information related to the case that was not brought up in the trial, possibly leading the jury to base its guilty verdict on inadmissible information. A third component of the filing is a transcript of a conversation between the second juror and another individual in which the two discuss whether or not the juror answered pre-trial questions appropriately, among other things.
This motion was filed on February 26, the day before sentencing. During sentencing, which took place on February 27, Judge Kelly Brooks mentioned the motion, stating that it had been filed prematurely and would have to be refiled in order for him to rule on it.
On February 27 just after 3 p.m. (about an hour and a half after sentencing), Steel filed a second motion requesting a new trial. The new motion, at just three pages, leaves out all of the material from the original motion. Here, Steel simply asks for a new trial on four grounds: The verdict is contrary to the evidence and without support of it; The verdict is decidedly and strongly against the weight of the evidence; The verdict is contrary to law and the principles of justice and equity; and Any and all other issues of law and/or fact that will cause the verdict and sentence to be reversed.
Steel and Homerville attorney Chad R. Corlee submitted the motion. Judge Brooks has not yet issued a ruling on this latest motion.