Curry v. State
| Decision Date | 05 February 2015 |
| Docket Number | No. A14A2111.,A14A2111. |
| Parties | CURRY v. The STATE. |
| Court | Georgia Court of Appeals |
James C. Bonner Jr., Athens, Michael Wayne Tarleton, for Appellant.
Leonora Grant, Asst. Dist. Atty., Robert D. James Jr., Dist. Atty., for Appellee.
Following a jury trial, Darryl Curry was convicted of two counts of trafficking of persons for sexual servitude, two counts of pimping for person under 18, two counts of sexual exploitation of children, two counts of false imprisonment, two counts of cruelty to children in the first degree, two counts of simple battery, and one count of obstruction of a law-enforcement officer. Curry appeals, arguing that the trial court erred by admitting similar-transaction evidence and by instructing the jury in a manner that was inconsistent with the indictment. For the reasons set forth infra, we affirm.
Viewed in the light most favorable to the jury's verdict,1 the evidence shows that A.E., who is originally from Texas, began running away from home when she was 14 or 15 years old, and eventually, she relocated to Georgia. A.E. testified that she began running away because she had a difficult home life and experienced physical and sexual abuse. When she was almost 16 years old, A.E. joined “the life,” which she described as becoming the “property of somebody else.” Between the ages of 16 and 17, A.E. worked for eight or nine pimps in Texas and Georgia, and she lost count of how many men she had been sold to for sex. When she was 17 years old, A.E. posted an advertisement online seeking work as a prostitute because she was low on money, and Curry responded. Although she did not remember his exact words, A.E. could tell from Curry's response that he was a pimp and wanted her to work for him.
Subsequently, A.E. met Curry at a hotel, and after a brief conversation, she agreed to go live with him at a residence in Decatur. In the beginning, A.E. had her own bedroom, but later, she moved into Curry's room and began a sexual relationship with him. A.E. felt that she had no choice but to have sex with Curry because she thought he would harm her if she refused.
While living with Curry, A.E. and the other girls would solicit clients to pay them for sex, and they would have sex with these men at Curry's house in the “work room.” Curry set the prices and time frames for A.E. to meet clients, and she was required to give him all of the money that she earned. Additionally, while working for Curry, A.E. was not allowed to leave the house without him, say no to him, or have any money. A.E. testified that Curry provided her with alcohol and drugs, and she could not recall going a day sober.
At some point, Curry instructed A.E. to recruit another girl to work for him, and she contacted her 16–year–old friend, S.S., in an attempt to do so. A.E. lied to S.S. to lure her to Curry's house, but after meeting Curry, S.S. ultimately agreed to move in and begin working for him. And while living with Curry, S.S.—just like A.E.—was sold to men to perform sexual acts, and she too was required to give all of the proceeds to Curry. S.S. testified that she was “very, very scared” of Curry, and that she wanted to go home.
On one occasion, Curry learned that A.E. had communicated with another pimp, and he beat her with a belt and a wire hanger. Nonetheless, she continued to comply with his directives because it was the only way to keep “from getting harmed” and she did not want to “get beat” again. On another occasion, Curry took A.E. and S.S. to a club where he gave them ecstasy, and when they returned home, he “took advantage” of A.E. Later that night, after Curry fell asleep, A.E. ran out of the house half naked and screaming for help. A neighbor heard her screams and called the police, who then transported her to a nearby hospital for examination. The next morning, police officers went to Curry's house, kicked down the door, and found Curry and S.S. inside. After inspecting the home, the officers arrested Curry and took S.S. to a hospital.
Thereafter, Curry was charged with two counts of trafficking of persons for sexual servitude, two counts of pimping for person under 18, two counts of sexual exploitation of children, two counts of false imprisonment, two counts of cruelty to children in the first degree, two counts of aggravated assault, two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, one count of obstruction of a law-enforcement officer, one count of conspiracy to commit false statements, one count of keeping a place of prostitution for person under 18, and one count of giving false information to a law-enforcement officer. Curry moved for a directed verdict as to one charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and the charge of conspiracy to commit false statements, and the trial court granted that motion. After a jury trial, Curry was found not guilty of both aggravated-assault charges and one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, but he was convicted on all remaining counts. This appeal follows.
1. In his first enumeration of error, Curry argues that the trial court violated OCGA § 24–4–404(b) by admitting, over his objection, the testimony of L.B., a third woman who claimed that Curry sold her to men as a prostitute. We disagree.
At the outset, we note that our review of a trial court's decision to admit similar-transaction evidence is for a “clear abuse of discretion.”2 And here, the record reflects that, prior to trial, the State notified Curry that it intended to present similar-transaction evidence under OCGA § 24–4–404(b).3 Specifically, the State planned to present testimony from L.B. that Curry “forced her to perform acts of prostitution” in a “crack house” when she was 17 years old. Curry then filed a motion in limine to exclude this evidence, arguing that it was not being offered for a proper purpose and that any potential relevance of L.B.'s testimony would be substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice. Ultimately, the trial court denied Curry's motion, finding that L.B.'s testimony was not improper character evidence, but rather, it was admissible to show intent, motive, plan, and identity. Further, the court found that the probative value of this evidence was not substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice.
At trial, L.B. testified that she and her 16–year–old friend met Curry at Underground Atlanta in 2009 and agreed to leave with him. Afterward, Curry took them to a house, where L.B. lived for about a month, during which time he forced her to have sex with him, and L.B. did not resist because she was frightened of Curry. L.B. described Curry as a “pimp,” for whom she earned money as a prostitute against her will. And while L.B. worked for Curry, he set the prices for her services, had control over her at all times, and collected all of the money that she earned.
In considering Curry's argument that L.B.'s testimony was inadmissible, we begin with the text of recently enacted OCGA § 24–4–404(b),4 which provides:
As to the first prong of the test, Curry argues that the evidence was not admissible for any proper purpose and served only as improper evidence of his character and propensity to commit the crimes. Further, as to the trial court's finding that the similar-transaction evidence was relevant to prove his intent, he argues that his intent was not at issue because his defense strategy was to show that the victims were not credible, not that he did not intend to commit the crimes charged. This argument, however, is belied by the record. Indeed, contrary to Curry's argument, a defendant who enters a not-guilty plea “makes intent a material issue which imposes a substantial burden on the government to prove intent, which it may prove by qualifying Rule 404(b) evidence absent affirmative steps by the defendant to remove intent as an issue.”9
In the case sub judice, Curry pleaded not guilty, thereby making his intent a material issue and placing a substantial burden on the State to prove intent, and he took no affirmative steps to remove intent as an issue.10 In fact, contrary to Curry's contention that his defense strategy was not to show that he lacked intent to commit the offenses, his defense counsel argued to the jury that the victims were “very close friends” who took advantage of Curry when he was only trying to help them. Suffice it to say, Curry's position that he intended only to help the victims, but not to commit any criminal offenses, squarely challenges the element of intent. And under these circumstances, the trial court did not err in finding that the first prong of the similar-transaction test was satisfied because the evidence at issue was admissible for a purpose other than Curry's character.11
Curry does not dispute that the second prong of our (and...
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...will give consideration and great weight to constructions placed on the Federal Rules by the federal courts." Curry v. State , 330 Ga. App. 610, 613 (1), 768 S.E.2d 791 (2015) (citation and punctuation omitted).10 As explained by Professor Milich,The probative value of proving knowledge lie......
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