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State of Ga. v. Centers

The husband of the criminal defendant was not an innocent owner of the car subject to forfeiture because the husband had given the car to the defendant before the crime was committed.

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The State of Georgia appeals from an order denying its in rem forfeiture action and adjudicating Wilburn Centers an innocent owner of a vehicle seized by the State when his wife Tracy was arrested for possessing methamphetamine and other crimes. Because the trial court erred as a matter of law by concluding that Wilburn was a legal owner of the vehicle when it was seized, we reverse. Under OCGA § 16-13-49 o 5 and p 6, an in rem forfeiture proceeding shall be held, as here, by the court without a jury.1 “Upon appellate review, factual findings made after such a bench trial shall not be set aside unless clearly erroneous, and due regard shall be given to the opportunity of the trial court to judge the credibility of the witnesses.”2 Where the evidence is “uncontroverted and no question regarding the credibility of witnesses was presented, we conduct a de novo review of the trial court’s application of law to the undisputed facts . . . , and we owe no deference to the trial court’s conclusions of law. Instead, we are free to apply anew the legal principles to the facts.”3

The relevant evidence is without material dispute and shows that in June 2004, Wilburn obtained financing and bought a used Chevrolet Corvette from another party through an advertisement on the Internet. A certificate of title was issued in Wilburn’s name, and in 2006, after Wilburn payed off the financing for the car, the security interest was released, leaving Wilburn with sole, unencumbered ownership of the vehicle.

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