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Sawhill v. State

The defendant, who is not a licensed attorney, held himself out to a probationer and his probation officer as being entitled to practice law and by furnishing legal services and advice to the probationer.

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A Floyd County jury found John Sawhill guilty of the unauthorized practice of law, and he was given a 12-month sentence consisting of six months in confinement and six months on probation. Sawhill appeals, challenging the sufficiency of the evidence. The challenge is without merit and we affirm the conviction. On appeal from a criminal conviction, we view the evidence in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict, and the appellant no longer enjoys the presumption of innocence.1 We do not weigh the evidence or determine witness credibility; rather, our standard of review is whether, based on the evidence, a rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the charged offense beyond a reasonable doubt.2

Viewed in the light most favorable to the verdict, the evidence shows that in February 2005, Clifford Broome was placed on probation in Floyd County for traffic offenses. Later that year, he was working outside Georgia and needed help making sure that his probation fees and fines were paid. In November 2005, Sawhill, who is not a licensed attorney, called Broome and offered to help him make the probation payments while he was out of state. Broome had met Sawhill on two or three prior occasions, and believed from what Sawhill had said on those occasions that he was a licensed attorney. Broome agreed to pay Sawhill for his help in making the probation payments.

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