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Final Copy 287 Ga. 703 S10A0393. WILLIS v. THE STATE.

MELTON, Justice. Following a jury trial, Aaron Brandon Willis appeals his convictions for the robbery and burglary of Joseph Briglevich as well as the kidnapping, armed robbery, and murder of Ramona Agramontes.1 Among other things, Willis contends that his confession to these crimes was involuntary. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm. 1. In the light most favorable to the verdict, the record shows that, on June 6, 2003, two masked and armed men broke into Briglevich's home, tied him up, and stole money and a .45 caliber handgun from him. Approximately two weeks

On October 8, 2004, Willis was indicted for the robbery and burglary of Briglevich, as well as the kidnapping, armed robbery, felony murder, and malice murder of Agramontes. Following a jury trial, Willis was found guilty on all counts. On March 21, 2006, Willis was sentenced to life in prison for malice murder and armed robbery, and he was also sentenced to 20 consecutive years each for burglary, robbery, and kidnapping. On March 24, 2006, Willis filed a motion for new trial that was denied on April 17, 2009. After Willis filed his notice of appeal on April 30, 2009, this case was docketed in this court for the January 2010 Term and orally argued on February 9, 2010.
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later, a call was made from a payphone near Willis' apartment requesting a cab. Agramontes was dispatched to pick up this caller. The next night, July 1, 2003, Agramontes' body was found on the ground in a wooded area. Her taxicab was nearby with its engine still running. Agramontes had been murdered with a .45 caliber handgun, and ballistics testing showed that it was the same handgun that had been stolen from Briglevich. In a recorded statement made to police on April 15, 2004, Willis admitted to the crimes against both Agramontes and Briglevich. Three days later, while being held in jail, Willis made a written confession to murdering Agramontes, as well as robbing and murdering another victim, John Evans, in February of 2004. The circumstances of Evans' murder were admitted at trial as a similar transaction.2 This evidence was ample to support the jury's finding that Willis was guilty of the crimes for which he was convicted beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U. S. 307 (99 SC 2781, 61 LE2d 560) (1979). 2. Willis erroneously contends that his custodial statement confessing to

Evans was shot in the head with a 9-millimeter weapon, and his truck was stolen. Two months later, while executing a warrant for the search of Willis' apartment, police found Evans' truck keys, credit cards, and camera.
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the crimes in issue was improperly admitted into evidence because police failed to end the interrogation after Willis unambiguously invoked his right to counsel. A suspect who asks for a lawyer at any time during a custodial interrogation may not be subjected to further questioning by law enforcement until an attorney has been made available or until the suspect reinitiates the conversation. If the police persist in questioning a suspect who has requested that counsel be present, any resulting statements made by the suspect are inadmissible in the State's case-in-chief. In order for a suspect to properly invoke his right to counsel during a custodial interrogation, he must articulate his desire to have counsel present sufficiently clearly that a reasonable police officer in the circumstances would understand the statement to be a request for an attorney. (Citations and punctuation omitted.) McDougal v. State, 277 Ga. 493, 498-499 (1) (B) (591 SE2d 788) (2004). Invocation of the Miranda right to counsel "requires, at a minimum, some statement that can reasonably be construed to be an expression of a desire for the assistance of an attorney." [Cit.] But if a suspect makes a reference to an attorney that is ambiguous or equivocal in that a reasonable officer in light of the circumstances would have understood only that the suspect might be invoking the right to counsel, our precedents do not require the cessation of questioning. [Cits.] Jordan v. State, 267 Ga. 442, 444 (1) (480 SE2d 18) (1997). The relevant portion of Willis' audio-recorded interview is as follows: Detective: This is saying that I advised you of your [Miranda] rights and you know what your rights are and you're going to talk to me.
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Okay? Willis: Uhm

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