Case Name: GRAHAM v. THE STATE
Court: Court of Appeals of Georgia
Jurisdiction: Georgia
Decision Date: 1980-02-28
Citations: 153 Ga. App. 658
Docket Number: 58828
Parties: GRAHAM v. THE STATE.
Judges: Smith, Shulman, Birdsong, Carley and Sognier, JJ., concur. Deen, C. J., McMurray, P. J., and Banke, J., dissent.
Reporter: Georgia Appeals Reports
Volume: 153
Pages: 658–666

Head Matter:
58828.
GRAHAM v. THE STATE.

Opinion:
Quillian, Presiding Judge.
The defendant appeals his conviction for burglary. The two grounds raised by his enumerations of error are: "1. The Court erred in overruling defendant's objection and motion for mistrial and in failing to give curative instructions to impanelled and prospective jurors resulting from prejudicial remarks elicited by the Assistant District Attorney during voir dire questioning, which unlawfully placed defendant's character in issue. 2. The Court erred in failing to sustain defendant's objection and motion for mistrial, and in failing to rebuke an officer of the Court (counsel for co-defendant), and to give curative instructions to the jurors resulting from prejudicial and unlawful comments made by such officer."
1. The voir dire was not transcribed and after conducting two hearings to determine what transpired the trial judge entered an order reciting "the undersigned Judge of the Superior Court of Thomas County, Georgia who presided at the trial of said case on December 15,1978 is unable to recall with certainty the statements made by R. J. Ramsey, the prospective juror in said case, during voir dire questioning." Since this is a criminal case the question arises as to whether a transcript of the voir dire is required. For, if so, it was error to fail to record the proceedings on voir dire. Wade v. State, 231 Ga. 131 (200 SE2d 271); McElwee v. State, 147 Ga. App. 84 (248 SE2d 162). Code Ann. § 6-805 (a) (Ga. L. 1965, pp. 18,24) provides that: "In all felony cases, the transcript of evidence and proceedings shall be reported and prepared as provided in Code Section 27-2401, or as may hereafter be provided by law." Code Ann. § 27-2401 (Code § 27-2401; as amended through 1976, pp. 991, 992) requires: "On the trial of all felonies the presiding judge shall have the testimony taken down, and, when directed by the judge, the court reporter shall exactly and truly record, or take stenographic notes of, the testimony and proceedings in the case, except the argument of counsel. In the event of a verdict of guilty, the testimony shall be entered on the minutes of the court or in a book to be kept for that purpose." In Aiken v. State, 226 Ga. 840, 842 (178 SE2d 202), the Supreme Court pointed out: "Construing Code Ann. § 6-805 with Code § 27-2401, it would appear that in a felony case all testimony and proceedings in the case must be reported, except the argument of counsel." The court then reiterated this fact in Brown v. State, 242 Ga. 602 (250 SE2d 491): "Code § 27-2401 mandates the transcription of the proceedings in all felonies except the argument of counsel. "
It should be observed that in two decisions the Supreme Court found the necessity for transcribing the voir dire proceedings in death cases, but predicated their rationale on Witherspoon v. Illinois, 391 U. S. 510 (88 SC 1770, 20 LE2d 776), rather than relying on Code § 27-2401. See Ross v. State, 233 Ga. 361, 367 (211 SE2d 356); Owens v. State, 233 Ga. 869, 871 (214 SE2d 173). In Owens, 233 Ga. 869, 872, supra, referring to Code § 27-2401 the court remarked, somewhat cryptically: "Code Ann. § 6-805 (d) provides that 'Where a trial in any civil or criminal case is reported by a court reporter, all motions, colloquies, objections, rulings... and all other proceedings which may be called in question on appeal... shall be reported...' In light of Witherspoon, supra, Code Ann. § 27-2401 does not diminish this requirement."
In two opinions this court has espoused the view that the voir dire need not be transcribed. In Watts v. State 141 Ga. App. 127 (1) (232 SE2d 590), we stated: "This case did not authorize the imposition of the death sentence, consequently there was no requirement to provide a verbatim transcript of the. entire voir dire to enable this court to determine possible issues falling within the holding of Witherspoon v. Illinois, 391 U. S. 510 (88 SC 1770, 20 LE2d 776)." No authority was cited for that proposition. In Hamilton v. State, 146 Ga. App. 884 (6) (247 SE2d 551), we held: "Failure of the trial court, absent request, to have reported voir dire and opening statements of counsel was not error." There the opinion cited Code Ann. § 27-2401 and Newell v. State, 237 Ga. 488, 489 (228 SE2d 873). Of course, the Newell case is authority only for the principle that opening statements of counsel need not be reported.
While the issue is not entirely free from doubt, after careful reconsideration the author of the opinion is now convinced that he erroneously concurred in the two cited decisions rendered by Court of Appeals: Watts v. State, 141 Ga. App. 127, supra, and Hamilton v. State, 146 Ga. App. 884, supra.
The language of the Code sections is clear in its command that the testimony and the proceedings be reported in a felony case. The Supreme Court has so interpreted the provisions. See Aiken v. State, 226 Ga. 840, supra, and Brown v. State, 242 Ga. 602, supra. In a situation such as the case sub judice, the defendant is entitled to have the voir dire reported or transcribed and is harmed by the failure to do so. For the benefit of the bench and bar Watts v. State, 141 Ga. App. 127, supra, and Hamilton v. State, 146 Ga. App. 884, supra, are hereby overruled insofar as they do not require the voir dire to be recorded.
Assuming but not deciding that the failure to record the voir dire might not be harmful error in some situations, here the defendant contended that the assistant district attorney elicited from a prospective juror a statement prejudicial to defendant's character. The trial judge was unable to recall the statements. Thus, the defendant was effectively denied his right to assert error by the record due to the failure to transcribe the voir dire. See Wade v. State, 231 Ga. 131, 133, supra. It was reversible error to fail to record the voir dire in this case.
2. The remaining enumeration of error attempts to raise the issue that counsel for a co-defendant illegally commented on the defendant's failure to take the stand and testify. This issue will not recur on a retrial since that co-defendant was found not guilty.
Submitted November 19, 1979
Decided February 28, 1980
Thomas H. Vann, Jr., for appellant.
H. Lamar Cole, District Attorney, for appellee.
Judgment reversed.
Smith, Shulman, Birdsong, Carley and Sognier, JJ., concur. Deen, C. J., McMurray, P. J., and Banke, J., dissent.