Court Opinion

ID: 9625353
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 07:37:37.114286+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:06:07.063069
License: Public Domain

*278Pannell, Presiding Judge,
concurring in the judgment, but dissenting in part.
I concur in the judgment of affirmance but dissent from the overruling of Henderson v. State, 134 Ga. App. 898 (216 SE2d 696); Burns v. State, 135 Ga. App. 842 (3) (219 SE2d 487); and Graham v. State, 135 Ga. App. 825 (219 SE2d 477) and from that portion of the opinion which states that a similar charge was found not to constitute reversible error in Trask v. State, 132 Ga. App. 645 (9) (208 SE2d 591).
The "similar” charge in Trask was not in any way attacked. In that case complaint was made that the trial judge failed to charge requests of the defendant to the effect that if the jury believed the defendant was justified under the law it would be their duty to acquit him. This court held the following charge met the requirements of the request and there was no error. The charge given was: "Now, the defendant contends that he is not guilty of the offense of murder or any other crime. He contends that the state has not proved his guilt to a moral and reasonable certainty beyond a reasonable doubt; he contends that the killing was justifiable under the law. He contends that the killing was an accident. If, after consideration of the evidence, or from a lack of the evidence, you believe those contentions of the defendant to be the truth of the case, or if you believe either of these contentions of the defendant to be the truth of the case, you should acquit him. ” (Emphasis supplied.) There was no attack upon the quoted charge on the ground it placed an undue burden upon defendant, nor was it attacked in any way whatsoever. Accordingly, it can not be said the above charge was approved or held not to be erroneous against such attacks.
In the Henderson, Graham and Burns cases (the record discloses) there were erroneous or exaggerated statements of the defendant’s contentions plus additional language immediately following to the effect that "if the jury believed the defendant’s contentions they should acquit him. ”
The charge complained of in the present case contains no such additional language, and thus did not impliedly place the burden of proof upon the defendant *279to prove his contentions in order to be acquitted, as the additional language was held to do in Henderson and Graham. While Braden for this reason may be in conflict with Henderson and Graham, this is a question not necessary to decide in the present case as we have here no such additional language to the charge of which complaint is made.
I see no need, therefore, to overrule any of these cases or to decide whether under the facts of those cases there is a conflict between Braden on the one hand, and Henderson, Graham and Burns on the other.
I am authorized to state that Judge Quillian and Judge Webb join me in the foregoing.