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In the Interest of D. W.

The evidence supported the juveniles' delinquency adjudications for prowling, because they were present behind a closed retail establishment at 4:00 a.m.

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A Coffee County juvenile court adjudicated D. W., a 16-year-old boy, J. T., a 14-year-old boy, and L. W., a 12-year-old boy,1 collectively “the defendants” delinquent for committing the offense of prowling.2 On appeal, the defendants challenge the sufficiency of the evidence and contend that the juvenile court erred by not dismissing the delinquency petitions for failure to comply with OCGA § 15-11-49. For the reasons that follow, we affirm. “On appeal from a delinquency adjudication, we view the evidence in a light most favorable to support the juvenile court’s findings and judgment. Moreover, the juvenile court resolves conflicts in the evidence, and this Court reviews only the sufficiency and not the weight of the evidence.”3

So viewed, the evidence presented to the juvenile court shows that during the early morning hours of January 5, 2009, Douglas Police Officer Jack Cliett, who was in a marked patrol car and wearing his uniform, received a complaint of disorderly conduct. Cliett was investigating the complaint when he witnessed the defendants behind a Dollar General Store, which was closed at the time. Upon seeing the patrol car, the defendants fled to a wooded area behind the store and continued to flee even after Cliett exited his car and told them to stop. After the officer repeated his instructions to stop, the defendants obeyed and got on the ground. The defendants’ only explanation for their presence behind the closed establishment was that they were “out messing around.”

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