Man accused of murdering young father outside Cobb gas station trying to get conviction overturned

COBB COUNTY, Ga. — A man convicted of shooting and killing a 26-year-old father is preparing to ask the courts to overturn his conviction.

Gregory Gabriel, 26, was shot to death at the Texaco on Mableton Parkway during his lunch break in June 2020.

Channel 2′s Michael Seiden was in Cobb County Friday, where he talked to the victim’s mother, who didn’t pull any punches.

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Diane Simpson said that at the time her son was killed, he and his soon-to-be fiance were living the dream and preparing to get engaged while raising their 8-month-old daughter.

“He was a great guy,” Simpson said. “Outgoing, he loved life. Full of life. “It’s still unbelievable that he’s not here with us today. That he left his daughter behind that he was looking forward to raising and spending time with "

David Nesbit Jr. of Douglasville was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole. But tonight, Nesbit is fighting to get his conviction overturned.

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In his motion for a new trial, his new lawyer, Ben Goldberg, lays out several reasons, claiming that the defendant was “denied his right to effective assistance of counsel when counsel failed to object after the prosecuting attorney in closing arguments asserted her personal opinion about the defendant’s guilt and the strength of the government’s case against him.”

Simpson doesn’t think he should see the light of day.

“He don’t deserve to be out on the streets walking around all the people,” Simpson said. “Because to me, he’s not a human. He’s inhuman to me.”

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Nesbit’s attorney told Seiden they have identified several strong legal grounds that could lead to a reversal of his client’s conviction and he looks forward to litigating those issues before the trial court.

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