Georgia Supreme Court Upholds Murder Conviction and Life Sentence in Newton County Killing

COVINGTON, Ga. — The Supreme Court of Georgia has upheld the murder conviction and life-without-parole sentence of Keyondre Preston in the 2019 shooting death of Shelvis Hillman, affirming a Newton County jury’s verdict and rejecting claims raised on appeal.

In a 23-page opinion issued last week, the state’s highest court affirmed Preston’s convictions for murder, armed robbery, aggravated assault and firearm-related offenses stemming from the April 3, 2019, killing.

A Newton County jury found Preston guilty in October 2021 of multiple charges, including malice murder, armed robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. The trial court sentenced him to life without the possibility of parole for murder, along with additional prison terms on related charges.

According to evidence presented at trial, Preston shot and killed Hillman at the home of Hillman’s uncle, Charlie Hillman, before robbing Hillman, Charlie Hillman and Charlie’s roommate, Curtis Kimbrough.

Testimony showed that earlier that day Preston and another man, David Catlett, went to the home of Hillman’s father, Stanley Hillman. During that encounter, Preston allegedly fired a gun at Stanley Hillman’s dog. Later that evening, Preston and several others traveled to Charlie Hillman’s home, where the fatal shooting occurred.

Witnesses testified that Hillman was shot in the kitchen. After the shooting, Preston allegedly robbed individuals inside the home, taking personal property and Hillman’s firearm before fleeing the scene.

Investigators recovered evidence linking Preston to the crime, including witness identifications and ballistic evidence connecting shell casings recovered from both crime scenes. Preston was arrested on April 20, 2019, at a hotel in Cordele.

On appeal, Preston argued that the trial court improperly allowed prosecutors to introduce evidence of two armed robberies from DeKalb County in 2018. The Supreme Court disagreed, finding the evidence was properly admitted, particularly in light of Preston’s defense that he either was not involved in the crimes or acted in self-defense.

Preston also argued that jurors should have been instructed on self-defense. The Supreme Court concluded that even if the trial court erred by not giving the instruction, any error was harmless because of the strength of the evidence presented against him.

In its opinion, the court wrote that “given the strong evidence of Preston’s guilt, any evidence supporting a jury charge on justification and related concepts, to the extent that such evidence exists, was weak at best.”

The court noted there was no evidence that Preston saw Hillman with a gun before the shooting, that Hillman threatened Preston with a firearm, or that Preston believed deadly force was necessary to protect himself.

The appeal was handled by Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney Jillian Hall, who also prosecuted the case at trial.

The Supreme Court unanimously affirmed the judgment, leaving Preston’s convictions and sentence in place.