Court Opinion

ID: 9586356
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 23:09:49.473216+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:29:47.201186
License: Public Domain

Sognier, Judge,
concurring specially.
I concur in the results of this case. This special concurrence arises because I cannot agree that the Supreme Court intended their decision in Cuzzort v. State, 254 Ga. 745 (334 SE2d 661) (1985) to be applied to the fact situation in this case. Although I am constrained to say that Cuzzort is subject to the interpretation that the majority places upon it, a close reading of Cuzzort indicates that the court relied upon the fact that the witness’s out-of-court statement was made “on an occasion near in time to the alleged offense.” Cuzzort, supra, page 745.
To place the broad interpretation on Cuzzort that the majority does would lead to every witness being able to enhance his veracity and bolster his case by his previous out-of-court statements made prior to trial. The admission of this hearsay evidence could enlarge a case from one witness to several and could result in the calculated making of statements by a witness for this very purpose. For the stated reasons, I concur specially.
I am authorized to state that Presiding Judge Birdsong joins in this special concurrence.