Hawkins v. State, 75493

• Decision Date: 16 February 1988
• Docket Number: No. 75493,75493
• Citation: 185 Ga.App. 837,366 S.E.2d 222
• Parties: HAWKINS v. The STATE.
• Court: Georgia Court of Appeals

Page 222

366 S.E.2d 222

185 Ga.App. 837

HAWKINS v. The STATE.

No. 75493.

Court of Appeals of Georgia.

Feb. 16, 1988.

Linda B. Borsky, Atlanta, for appellant.

Thomas J. Charron, Dist. Atty., James F. Morris, Asst. Dist. Atty., for appellee.

CARLEY, Judge.

Appellant was tried before a jury and found guilty of theft by deception, theft by receiving stolen property, and removal and falsification of vehicle identification numbers with the intent to convert the vehicles. He appeals from the judgments of conviction and sentences entered on the jury's verdicts.

1. Appellant enumerates a portion of the trial court's pre-evidentiary statement to the jury as erroneous.

Error, if any, in that portion of the trial court's pre-evidentiary statement under consideration was rendered harmless by the trial court's subsequent giving of a correct charge on the legal principle involved. "[A] pre-evidentiary statement is not the equivalent of a jury charge; even if a portion thereof had been incorrect, where the principles of law were thoroughly covered in the main charge, the initial statement would not have misled the jury and would be harmless error. [Cit.]" Farmer v. State, 180 Ga.App. 720, 721(1c), 350 S.E.2d 583 (1986). See also Phillips v. State, 183 Ga.App. 194(1), 358 S.E.2d 480 (1987). This enumeration is without merit.

2. The trial court admitted, over appellant's best evidence objection, certain documents purporting to show that a Mr. Jones owned a certain automobile.

Even assuming that the admission of this documentary evidence was error, there was other uncontradicted evidence offered at trial to show that Mr. Jones had purchased the automobile and was its owner. See generally Hightower v. Berlin, 129 Ga.App. 246, 248(5), 199 S.E.2d 335 (1973). "The admission of improper evidence is harmless when the fact sought to be shown is otherwise fully and properly established. [Cits.] Thus, even if the admission of the [documentary] evidence had been error, it was cumulative and harmless." Barrett v. State, 146 Ga.App. 207, 207-208, 245 S.E.2d 890 (1978). See also Garrett v. State, 156 Ga.App. 33(2), 274 S.E.2d 80 (1980).

Judgment affirmed.

BANKE, P.J., and BENHAM, J., concur.