Life sentence upheld in 2013 murder of Grady County baby

ATLANTA — The 2015 life-in-prison sentence of a Grady County man found guilty of murdering an infant and seriously injuring another in 2013 has been upheld by the Georgia Supreme Court.

Following a trial in March 2015, a Grady County Superior Court jury convicted Marcus Bernard Smiley, who is in his early 30s, on counts of murder, cruelty to children in the first degree, and aggravated battery for the death of 2-month-old Mia Williams and aggravated battery for injuring Tyre Mears, who was 7 months old at the time of the attacks.

Smiley, who was sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole, appealed his convictions to the state Supreme Court, arguing that trial evidence did not exclude the possibilities that the death of Mia and the injuries to Tyre were caused by their respective mothers, by unknown individuals or by accident.

In Monday’s opinion written by Chief Justice P. Harris Hines, the Supreme Court rejected Smiley’s arguments. The Supreme Court said it upheld the convictions and sentences, except for a separate sentence imposed for the aggravated battery of Mia Williams. The justices said that conviction should have been merged with the malice murder conviction for sentencing purposes.

“There was evidence regarding Smiley’s movements and behavior toward the victims at the relevant times, his behavior when paramedics arrived at Williams’ home, his conduct after the injuries were inflicted upon the infants, and his behavior when discussing the infants’ injuries with an investigator,” the opinion stated. “The evidence presented at trial authorized the jury to find Smiley guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of each of the crimes of which he was found guilty.”

According to a release from the Supreme Court, Smiley began dating Tyre’s mother, Amanda Mitchell, in June 2013. Mitchell initially told investigators she thought Tyre had been injured in a fall or by her 3-year-old son, but later said she had been evasive in interviews because she loved Smiley, thought she was pregnant with his child, and did not want people to think she was a bad mother for failing to protect her 7-month-old son.

That interview came after Tyre’s godmother took him to the hospital and physicians concluded that the infant had suffered multiple skull fractures and rib fractures. As a result of his injuries, Tyre has severe neurological issues and motor function delays, according to the court briefs. He can only say a few words, including the word, “help,” and recently he was diagnosed with stage two autism.

After Mitchell ended contact with Smiley, the court release said, he began dating Courtney Williams in September 2013. Smiley frequently stayed overnight, and Mia became increasingly fussy, difficult to feed and often spit up her milk.

On Sept. 25, while Williams was in the kitchen cooking, Smiley was in the front room with Mia. When the baby suddenly screamed, Williams ran in and rocked her to sleep with a bottle, but later that night, Mia became fussy. When she started twitching her head and exhibiting seizure-like movements, Williams called 911. When paramedics arrived, Mia had calmed down and her vital signs seemed normal, so Williams decided not to have her taken to a hospital.

On the night of Sept. 30, Williams awoke and noticed that Smiley and Mia were missing from the bedroom. She found them in the living room, where Smiley said he had picked up the baby because she’d been crying. The next morning, after getting her older child ready for school, Williams found Mia moaning in her crib. The baby’s head was arched back, her eyes wide open, and her hands balled up at her sides. She asked Smiley what he had done to the baby, and he denied hurting her. Williams called 911, and an ambulance took Mia to the hospital.

Local doctors decided to have Mia transported by Life Flight to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, where doctors determined Mia had incurred trauma within the past 24 hours and that the injuries were caused by abuse. The baby had bleeding in her brain.

She remained at the hospital for three days, two on life support. After life support was removed, Mia died in her mother’s arms. Smiley had not visited them in the hospital. The autopsy showed that Mia had retinal hemorrhages consistent with being squeezed so hard that the blood vessels in her eyes had burst. She had multiple rib fractures, also consistent with squeezing, and her head injuries were consistent with violent movement and violent impact of the head. Her death was ruled a homicide.

During the investigation, Williams said she suspected Smiley had caused the injuries. Smiley denied knowing how either baby had been injured. He repeatedly went to Williams’ home and threatened to kill her for accusing him of killing Mia, leading Williams to twice call police, the court release stated.

Smiley is currently an inmate at Macon State Prison, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections.