Watkins v. State

Under the doctrine of transferred intent, the evidence supported the defendant's conviction for aggravated assault, even though he did not intend to shoot victim and victim did not anticipate receiving violent injury from the defendant.

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A jury found Roderick Watkins and Reginald Thomas guilty of one count of aggravated assault OCGA § 16-5-21 a 2 and one count of aggravated battery OCGA § 16-5-24 a. In Case No. A10A2236 , Watkins appeals challenging the sufficiency of the evidence as to his conviction of aggravated assault. Further, he contends that the trial court erred in refusing to charge the jury on justification and on reckless conduct as a lesser included offense of aggravated assault. In Case No. A10A2312, Thomas appeals claiming that the trial court erred in failing to merge his aggravated assault conviction into that of aggravated battery. Discerning no error, we affirm in both cases. Viewed in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict Cross v. State , 285 Ga. App. 518, 519 646 SE2d 723 2007, the evidence shows that on June 25, 2005, Watkins and Thomas went to a barbecue in a DeKalb County park with their girlfriends, Chantel Myhan and Teneicha Crumbley, respectively. At the park, Thomas and Watkins sat in Crumbley’s vehicle while the two women got out to socialize. As the women did so, Dwynell Jones approached Thomas and Watkins and entered into an argument with Watkins. Hearing the altercation, Crumbley and Myhan decided that it was time to leave the park. As they approached the scene of the dispute, Watkins told Myhan that Jones had threatened to “shoot up the truck.” When Crumbley began backing out of the park, Watkins began firing a handgun out his window into the crowd, Jones standing in it. Thomas joined in, firing his handgun from his window in the same direction. Calvin Hill, who was among those present at the scene, was struck by a bullet in the head —the wound blinding him. Crumbley and Myan later identified Thomas and Watkins as the shooters, and their arrest followed.

A10A2236

Watkins v. State

Under the doctrine of transferred intent, the evidence supported the defendant's conviction for aggravated assault, even though he did not intend to shoot victim and victim did not anticipate receiving violent injury from the defendant.

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