This post was originally published on this site.
The Georgia Supreme Court has upheld the murder conviction of a Gwinnett County man who was driving drunk at more than 120 mph when he struck and killed a pedestrian while fleeing state troopers.
In a unanimous opinion released Tuesday, the court affirmed the life sentence given to 59-year-old Victor Allen Smith, rejecting his appeal that prosecutors unfairly prejudiced jurors by noting his driver’s license had been suspended for about 18 years at the time of the crash.
In the opinion authored by Presiding Justice Sarah Hawkins Warren, the court said prosecutors presented “strong evidence” of Smith’s guilt.
“We are pleased with the Supreme Court’s ruling in this appeal,” Gwinnett District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson said. “And we are glad that, by upholding these convictions, justice perseveres for Hugo Martinez and his loved ones.”
Smith was convicted in 2023 of felony murder, vehicular homicide, DUI and related charges in the death of 22-year-old Hugo Natanael Martinez. Prosecutors said Smith was clocked “well over 80 mph” in a 70-mph zone on I-85 on March 6, 2022, when a Georgia State Trooper attempted a traffic stop. Smith refused to pull over and accelerated to more than 120 mph.
As he sped along the right shoulder, Smith’s silver Porsche hit Martinez, who was standing next to his pickup truck while it was being loaded onto a tow truck. The impact sent Martinez over a retaining wall and onto an adjacent roadway, killing him.
