Court rejects appeal in Cobb death-penalty case

The Georgia Supreme Court has rejected claims by an Ohio man who was sentenced to death for the 1990 kidnapping, rape and murder of a Smyrna grandmother.

Demarcus Antonio Sears had argued he deserved a new trial because his lawyer was incompetent. In 1993, Sears was sentenced to die for kidnapping and killing 59-year-old Gloria Wilbur as she loaded groceries in a supermarket parking lot. Sears later admitted raping and stabbing her and leaving her to die in the woods near I-75 in Kentucky.

About the Author

Bill Rankin

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.

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