Georgia Court Upholds Death Penalty Case

Man faces execution for murder of gas station manager

The Georgia Supreme Court on Monday unanimously upheld the death sentence of Ward Anthony Brockman, convicted in the 1990 slaying of a Columbus gas station manager.

In March 1994 a Superior Court jury convicted Brockman of felony murder and attempt to commit armed robbery in connection with the June 27, 1990 shooting death of Billy Lynn, 22 at the time of his death.

"We find that the evidence, construed most favorably to the jury's verdicts, was sufficient to authorize a rational trier of fact to find Brockman guilty of the crimes charged beyond a reasonable doubt," Justice Harold Melton wrote in the 67-page opinion. "Reviewing similar cases, considering both the crime and the defendant, we find that Brockman's death sentence is not disproportionate under Georgia law."