Court Opinion

ID: 9620884
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 05:49:05.356516+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T14:57:55.166524
License: Public Domain

Carley, Judge,
concurring specially.
In Division 1, the majority opinion addresses appellant’s contention that the trial court erred in failing to grant a mistrial when, contrary to the explicit ruling of our Supreme Court in Conklin v. State, 254 Ga. 558 (10) (331 SE2d 532) (1985), counsel for the State was allowed to refer to language recited to the jury as coming from “a Supreme Court case.” As pointed out in the majority opinion, the language the prosecutor utilized actually was included in the opinion of this Court in Spry v. State, 156 Ga. App. 74 (5) (274 SE2d 2) (1980). The majority relies primarily upon a decision of this Court interpreting Conklin and states as follows: “ ‘In assessing harm, as Conklin pointed out, “[c]ounsel have every right to refer to applicable law during closing argument (i.e., law that the court is going to give in charge).” [Cit.] . . . “It is counsel’s right to state his legal position to the jury; this right is indispensable to an intelligent presentation of his case.” Error flows from a misstatement of the law which may tend to mislead the jury. Defendant has failed to point out wherein there was such misstatement of the law and thus did not show harm.’ Beck v. State, 181 Ga. App. 681, 683 (3) (353 SE2d 610) (1987).” (Emphasis supplied.) (Majority opinion, page 695.)
Applying Beck to the facts of this case, it is my opinion that the argument was improper. As indicated by the emphasized language from Beck, counsel’s right to refer to applicable law during closing argument is limited to recitation of “law that the court is going to *699give in charge.” In this case, the challenged part of appellee’s counsel’s argument came from the State’s request to charge No. 6, which, during a pre-charge conference, the trial court expressly declined to give. Thus, as the Conklin court said, “[t]here is no justification, . . . for allowing an attorney to supplement the court’s charge by reading, in the jury’s presence, law that the court is not going to charge.” (Emphasis supplied.) Conklin v. State, supra, 571. Counsel for the State in this case did just what Conklin said he should not be allowed to do. I cannot agree with the majority that because “defense counsel was allowed to give his own definition of prurient interest . . . any error was balanced out.” (Majority opinion, p. 695). Defense counsel did not attempt to “read law,” and there was no similar objection to defendant’s argument. I know of no authority for a holding that what otherwise constitutes error can be “balanced out” by reliance upon conduct of the other party to which no objection is made.
Decided September 19, 1988
Rehearing denied October 5, 1988
Roger J. Dodd, for appellant.
Andrew Prather II, Solicitor, for appellee.
However I agree with the majority that the trial court did not commit reversible error in failing to grant a mistrial. After the second attempt of the prosecuting attorney to read law, and following the colloquy between the court and counsel, the trial court stated as follows: “I’ll overrule the motion for mistrial. I will admonish counsel to confine your arguments, if you will, to what you expect that the Judge will charge and logical extensions and arguments on those points.” The attorney for the defendant then responded “thank you,” and did not renew his motion for mistrial or make any further objection. “The giving of the curative instructions was not followed by a renewed motion for a mistrial. ‘The denial of a motion for mistrial is not subject to review when the motion is not renewed following corrective instructions. [Cits.]’ [Cit.]” Harper v. State, 182 Ga. App. 760, 764 (8) (357 SE2d 117) (1987). See also Ward v. State, 252 Ga. 85, 89 (2) (311 SE2d 449) (1984); Collins v. State, 183 Ga. App. 243, 244 (3) (358 SE2d 876) (1987).
I am authorized to state that Judge Sognier joins in this special concurrence.