Presnell v. State, 32995
| Decision Date | 06 February 1979 |
| Docket Number | No. 32995,32995 |
| Citation | 252 S.E.2d 625,243 Ga. 131 |
| Parties | PRESNELL v. The STATE. |
| Court | Georgia Supreme Court |
Grubbs & Platt, Adele W. Platt, William Holley, Marietta, for appellant.
Thomas J. Charron, Dist. Atty., Joseph L. Chambers, Asst. Dist. Atty., Arthur K. Bolton, Atty. Gen., John W. Dunsmore, Jr., Asst. Atty. Gen., for appellee.
Upon the appeal of this case (Presnell v. State, 241 Ga. 49, 243 S.E.2d 496 (1978), we affirmed the defendant's convictions of kidnapping, murder and kidnapping with bodily injury and the imposition of the death penalty for murder. Pursuant to Drake v. State, 239 Ga. 232(1), 236 S.E.2d 748 (1977), we set aside the defendant's conviction for forcible rape and directed that sentence be imposed for statutory rape.
The Supreme Court of the United States granted certiorari and reversed as to the conviction for kidnapping with bodily injury and the death sentence for murder. That Court denied certiorari as to the convictions for murder, kidnapping and statutory rape. The case was remanded for further proceedings. Presnell v. Georgia, --- U.S. ----, 99 S.Ct. 235, 58 L.Ed.2d 207 (1978).
As mandated by the United States Supreme Court we vacate our affirmance of the appellant's conviction for kidnapping with bodily injury and the death sentence for murder. At the same time we vacate Division 1 of our opinion which affirmed the convictions but which seemingly held that aggravated sodomy was not bodily injury within the meaning of the crime of kidnapping with bodily injury.
We therefore restate Division 1 of the opinion as follows:
1. The appellant was convicted and sentenced for crimes against two female children, the younger of whom was killed, as follows:
a. Simple kidnapping of the younger child with a sentence of twenty years in prison.
b. Murder of the younger child with a sentence of death, the aggravating circumstance supporting the death penalty was the capital crime of kidnapping with bodily injury, aggravated sodomy, of the older child.
c. Kidnapping with bodily injury, aggravated sodomy of the older child with a sentence of death, the aggravating circumstance supporting the death sentence was the rape of the older child.
d. Rape of the older child with a sentence of death, the aggravating circumstance supporting the death sentence was the murder of the younger child.
The jury verdict as to the rape of the older child, because of the trial court's instruction and the form of the jury's verdict, must be construed as a finding of statutory rape, Drake v. State, 239 Ga. 232(1), 236 S.E.2d 748, supra. Statutory rape is not a capital crime in Georgia, therefore the death penalty for rape of the older child is not authorized and it is vacated but the conviction is affirmed with directions that the trial court sentence the appellant for statutory rape. Also, the statutory rape not being a capital crime, it cannot be an aggravating circumstance which will support the death...
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Kennedy v. Louisiana, No. 07-343 (U.S. 6/25/2008), No. 07-343.
...decision in which the Supreme Court of Georgia stated that "[s]tatutory rape is not a capital crime in Georgia." Pres-nell v. State, 243 Ga. 131, 132-133, 252 S. E. 2d 625, 626. But it appears Presnell was referring to the separate crime of statutory rape, which is not a capital offense in ......
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Presnell v. Kemp
...v. State, 241 Ga. 49, 243 S.E.2d 496 (1978), Presnell v. Georgia, 439 U.S. 14, 99 S.Ct. 235, 58 L.Ed.2d 207 (1978), and Presnell v. State, 243 Ga. 131, 252 S.E.2d 625, cert. denied, 444 U.S. 885, 100 S.Ct. 176, 62 L.Ed.2d 115 (1979).3 Petitioner was also convicted of statutory rape. Because......
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Presnell v. State
...v. Georgia, 439 U.S. 14, 99 S.Ct. 235, 58 L.Ed.2d 207 (1978), opinion vacated in part and death sentence upheld, Presnell v. State, 243 Ga. 131, 252 S.E.2d 625 (1979). In 1992, Presnell's death sentence was vacated during Federal habeas corpus proceedings. Presnell v. Zant, 959 F.2d 1524 (1......
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Kennedy v. Louisiana
...in which the Supreme Court of Georgia stated that “[s]tatutory rape is not a capital crime in Georgia.” Presnell v. State, 243 Ga. 131, 132–133, 252 S.E.2d 625, 626 (1979). But it appears Presnell was referring to the separate crime of statutory rape, which is not a capital offense in Georg......