Watson v. the State

Court of Appeals of Georgia

Watson v. the State

780 S.E.2d 822, 335 Ga. App. 227

CourtCourt of Appeals of Georgia

DecidedDecember 11, 2015

DocketA14A0742

StatusPublished

This text of 780 S.E.2d 822 (Watson v. the State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Watson v. the State, 780 S.E.2d 822, 335 Ga. App. 227 (Ga. Ct. App. 2015).

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Opinion

McFADDEN, Judge.

Patrick Watson was convicted on two counts of sexual battery against his minor daughter and one count of child molestation against another victim. In our opinion in Watson v. State, 329 Ga. App. 334 (765 SE2d 24) (2014), we affirmed his convictions. In so doing, in Division 3 (b) of our opinion we rejected Watson’s argument that the trial court erred in instructing the jury that “under Georgia law a person under the age of sixteen lacks legal capacity to consent to sexual conduct.” Id. at 338-340 (3) (b). In Watson v. State, 297 Ga. 718 (777 SE2d 677) (2015), the Supreme Court of Georgia reversed the judgment below on the sexual battery convictions, “holding] that this particular instruction is improper when given in relation to the offense of sexual battery.” Id. at 718. The Supreme Court noted that Watson’s conviction on child molestation was not at issue on certior-ari and did not address any of the other grounds upon which Watson had challenged his convictions.

We therefore vacate Division 3 (b) of our opinion in Watson v. State, supra, 329 Ga. App. 334, which addressed the propriety of the jury instruction described above, and in place of Division 3 (b) we adopt as our own the Supreme Court’s opinion in Watson v. State, supra, 297 Ga. 718. Because the Supreme Court neither addressed nor considered the other portions of our earlier opinion, and those *228 other portions are not inconsistent with the Supreme Court’s own opinion, those other portions “become binding upon the return of the remittitur.” Shadix v. Carroll County, 274 Ga. 560, 563 (1) (554 SE2d 465) (2001).

Decided December 9, 2015. Ross & Pines, Noah H. Pines, for appellant. Jacquelyn L. Johnson, District Attorney, Andrew J. Ekonomou, Katie M. Gropper, Assistant District Attorneys, for appellee.

Accordingly, the conviction for child molestation is affirmed and the convictions for sexual battery are reversed.

Judgment affirmed in part and reversed in part.

Andrews, P. J., and Ray, J., concur.

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McFADDEN, Judge.

Patrick Watson was convicted on two counts of sexual battery against his minor daughter and one count of child molestation against another victim. In our opinion in Watson v. State, 329 Ga. App. 334 (765 SE2d 24) (2014), we affirmed his convictions. In so doing, in Division 3 (b) of our opinion we rejected Watson’s argument that the trial court erred in instructing the jury that “under Georgia law a person under the age of sixteen lacks legal capacity to consent to sexual conduct.” Id. at 338-340 (3) (b). In Watson v. State, 297 Ga. 718 (777 SE2d 677) (2015), the Supreme Court of Georgia reversed the judgment below on the sexual battery convictions, “holding] that this particular instruction is improper when given in relation to the offense of sexual battery.” Id. at 718. The Supreme Court noted that Watson’s conviction on child molestation was not at issue on certior-ari and did not address any of the other grounds upon which Watson had challenged his convictions.

We therefore vacate Division 3 (b) of our opinion in Watson v. State, supra, 329 Ga. App. 334, which addressed the propriety of the jury instruction described above, and in place of Division 3 (b) we adopt as our own the Supreme Court’s opinion in Watson v. State, supra, 297 Ga. 718. Because the Supreme Court neither addressed nor considered the other portions of our earlier opinion, and those *228 other portions are not inconsistent with the Supreme Court’s own opinion, those other portions “become binding upon the return of the remittitur.” Shadix v. Carroll County, 274 Ga. 560, 563 (1) (554 SE2d 465) (2001).

Decided December 9, 2015. Ross & Pines, Noah H. Pines, for appellant. Jacquelyn L. Johnson, District Attorney, Andrew J. Ekonomou, Katie M. Gropper, Assistant District Attorneys, for appellee.

Accordingly, the conviction for child molestation is affirmed and the convictions for sexual battery are reversed.

Judgment affirmed in part and reversed in part.

Andrews, P. J., and Ray, J., concur.

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780 S.E.2d 822, 335 Ga. App. 227, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/watson-v-the-state-gactapp-2015.

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