New trial for man who drove dead wife’s body to Virginia and back
The Georgia Supreme Court on Monday, for the second time, reversed the murder conviction against a DeKalb County man who killed his wife and then drove to Virginia and back with her body in the trunk of his pickup truck.
This means Dennis Allaben will get a third murder trial for the Jan. 3, 2010, killing of
his wife.
At the time of her death, Maureen Allaben was the recently promoted set decorator of “The Mo’Nique Show” on BET. Police say she died after her husband put her in a chokehold.
Dennis Allaben has said he merely wanted to put her to sleep, tie her up and then confront her about his belief she was trying to poison him and was tracking his movements through GPS and computer monitoring, according to court records.
In 2013, the state high court reversed Allaben’s first conviction and granted him a new trial. On Monday, it reversed his second conviction on grounds his trial judge prohibited testimony from a defense witness who would have supported Allaben’s claim he didn’t mean to kill his wife.
About the Author
Bill Rankin has been an AJC reporter for more than 30 years. His father, Jim Rankin, worked as an editor for the newspaper for 26 years, retiring in 1986. Bill has primarily covered the state’s court system, doing all he can do to keep the scales of justice on an even keel. Since 2015, he has been the host of the newspaper’s Breakdown podcast.
