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Johnson v. State

The trial court erred in refusing the defendant's written request to charge on the lesser offense of possessing less than one ounce of marijuana, since some evidence supported the charge.

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Melinda Johnson appeals from her convictions for purchasing marijuana and possessing a firearm during the commission of a crime.1 She asserts that the trial court erred by refusing her written request to charge the jury on the lesser included offense of misdemeanor possession of marijuana and that insufficient evidence supports her purchase of marijuana conviction. Although we find sufficient evidence supports Johnson’s convictions, we must reverse because the trial court erred by refusing Johnson’s written request to charge on a lesser included offense. Viewed in the light most favorable to the verdict, the record shows that Johnson, an Effingham County sheriff’s patrol deputy, asked an acquaintance, Crystal Melton, to help her obtain marijuana for Johnson’s mother. After telling Johnson that she “could get it for her with the people she worked with at the time,” Melton “thought about it overnight,” and decided to report Johnson’s conduct to the sheriff’s department.

The next evening, Melton met Johnson in the parking lot of a grocery store. Both women remained in their cars and Melton handed Johnson a change purse containing two “dime” bags of marijuana. Melton testified that Johnson promised to pay her the next day because she did not have change for a $50 bill. After seeing a signal from Melton, other officers stopped Johnson while she was leaving the parking lot and arrested her.

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