Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: August 20, 2008
Contact : Sue McKinney
ELEVENTH CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS AFFIRMS CONVICTION OF EDDIE MILTON GAREY
Maxwell Wood, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia announced that on August 20, 2008, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit sitting en banc released the decision affirming the conviction of Eddie Milton Garey, United States v. Eddie Milton Garey, D.C. Docket No. 03-00083-CR-CDL-5.
For eleven days in September, 2003, Garey repeatedly and anonymously called the Macon-Bibb County 911 Center over cell phones and using a computer program to disguise his voice and made threats to use bombs and poisonous gas (weapons of mass destruction) to destroy various sites in the City of Macon, Georgia, unless he was paid money not to do so. He was arrested in the course of actually making one of these calls.
Garey was indicted on eleven counts of obstructing justice, five counts of threatening to use a weapon of mass destruction, five counts of making a threat affecting interstate commerce, five counts of manufacturing counterfeit securities and one count of possessing ammunition as a convicted felon. Garey was convicted on all counts and was sentenced to 360 months of imprisonment.
At the time of trial, Garey refused to work with the court-appointed counsel and said that he would rather represent himself. On appeal Garey contended the trial court violated his Sixth Amendment right to counsel by forcing him to proceed pro se when he had not affirmatively asked to represent himself. In unanimously affirming Garey’s conviction the Court held that, “In light of all the circumstances, we conclude Garey voluntarily waived his right to counsel by his conduct and, because he was forewarned of the consequences of his choice and the dangers it posed, we conclude the waiver was knowing. Therefore, we affirm.”
Questions concerning this case should be directed to Sue McKinney, Public Affairs Specialist, United States Attorney’s Office, at (478) 621-2602.
