State Seeks To Introduce Jail Calls In Andre Grier Death Penalty Case

  • Monday, April 28, 2025

Prosecutors said they plan to play up to 20 "jail calls" in the October trial of Andre Grier, who is facing a possible death penalty.

Prosecutor Cameron Williams said detectives listened to hundreds of hours of jail calls involving the central figures in the murder of witness Biancha Horton.

He said those have been culled down to about three hours of calls to be played for the jury.

Grier is the only remaining defendant after Courtney High pleaded guilty and got a life sentence and Charles "Slick" Shelton died at the county jail.

Jail inmates are told with each call that their conversations could possibly be used against them by law enforcement.

Chris Blackwell, the lead detective in the case in which an individual identified as Cortez Sims burst into the home of Ms. Horton and began firing, said many of the calls involve Sims. They were calls with his family members and Athens Park Bloods fellow gang members.

One person was killed, another injured and the young daughter of Ms. Horton left paralyzed in that shooting. Sims was convicted of the murder despite the fact that Ms. Horton was not there to testify at his trial - her body having been left in a ditch.

Detective Blackwell said he learned to detect the voice of Cortez Sims, though he said jail inmates sometimes try to confuse officers by using someone else's jail "spin number" on calls. He noted that Sims often says, "Say no more."

The witness said he began listening to Sims' calls as soon as he went into jail. He also listened to calls made by Shelton and to Grier when he was taken into custody on Aug. 1, 2016.

He said sometimes the calls would be "three-way" with the person receiving the call adding another individual to the conversation. He said Grier was often the person added.

Jeremy Winbush, a gang specialist, said one call makes reference to "Little Red" and "Bitch." He said Little Red was Marcel Christopher, a member of a rival gang - the Bounty Hunter Bloods. Christopher was among the shooting victims of Sims and testified against him. The reference to Bitch was to Ms. Horton, it was stated.

Ms. Horton was shot several times and her body was dumped on the side of the road.

Judge Boyd Patterson is presiding.

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