GA Supreme Court upholds White’s conviction and sentence

The Georgia Supreme Court today upheld the conviction and sentence of Dakota Lamar White in the murder of Samuel Poss.

Following trial in May 2018, a Houston County jury convicted White of malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault (two counts), concealing the death of another, and tampering with evidence. Houston County Superior Court Chief Judge Edward Lukemire sentenced White to life without parole plus a consecutive 10 years to serve.

White appealed his murder conviction and sentence to the Georgia Supreme Court last year. His attorneys argued that due to White being a minor at the time of the murder, his sentence was therefore unconstitutional. The second argument is that he was illegally arrested.

A now 20-year-old White was 17 when he lured his former classmate, 18-year-old Sam Poss, into his grandparents’ Perry home and murdered him as part of a suicide pact, with the help of 18-year-old Brandon Warren in 2016.

White’s attorneys, according to Houston County Assistant District Attorney Greg Winters, were citing a United States Supreme Court case law that states anyone under the age of 18 cannot receive a life sentence without a hearing.

The Houston County District Attorney’s Office argued that White did receive a hearing prior to his life sentence. Winters also stated that White’s defense team maintains that White’s initial arrest in October 2016 was unlawful because a warrant was not presented at the time. White’s case was tried by Winters and Assistant District Attorney Ryan English.

“The senseless violence that occurred in the early morning hours of October 15, 2016, has forever impacted multiple lives,” Winters said. “Sam’s mother and father will never be able to hug Sam again. Sam’s brother will never be able to speak to him again. Dakota White’s premeditated actions have led him to a place he will remain until he dies, prison. I am thankful for the hard work of the officers of the Perry Police Department and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Because of their determination to find the perpetrators of this crime and seek justice for Sam, a violent and dangerous criminal has been permanently removed from our streets.”

“The murder of Sam Poss was a crime that not only devastated Sam’s family and friends; it shocked the collective conscience of our community,” said Houston County District Attorney George Hartwig. “Senseless violent crimes, like the brutal murder of Sam Poss, will not go unpunished in Houston County. My office will continue to seek a full measure of justice for the people of Houston County.”