Following a jury trial, Audie Glover appeals from his conviction on two counts of cruelty to children in the first degree and one count of aggravated battery. He argues that the prosecution failed to prove venue beyond a reasonable doubt and that the trial court unlawfully closed the courtroom during the child victim’s testimony, committed harmful error by permitting witnesses to comment on the ultimate issue of the case, and abused its discretion by failing to give a jury instruction on the lesser included offense of reckless conduct. We find no error and affirm.On appeal, we review the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict and determine if a rational trier of fact could find all the essential elements of the crime charged beyond a reasonable doubt. We do not weigh the evidence or judge the credibility of witnesses. Jackson v. Virginia , 443 U.S. 307 99 SC 2781, 61 LE2d 560 1979.Allen v. State , 281 Ga. App. 294, 295 1 635 SE2d 884 2006. So viewed, the evidence adduced at trial showed that on December 22, 2002, Glover’s mother called 911 concerned about the well-being of her granddaughter, the three-year-old child victim. An officer from the Smyrna Police Department responded to the reported address, an apartment complex located in Cobb County, to investigate. Michael Thomas, an occupant of the apartment, refused to allow the officer to enter. As the officer left to obtain a search warrant, Thomas took the child victim behind his apartment and handed her over a fence to Rhonda Stephens, Glover’s girlfriend. Stephens left the apartment complex in a taxicab with the child.
The officer, who had been tipped off by a manager of the apartment complex, subsequently located and stopped the taxicab. Stephens initially attempted to hide the victim in the backseat and pass a second child to the officer, but the officer ultimately discovered the victim. He immediately observed that her eyes were blackened and she had a large bump on her forehead. Based on these obvious injuries, the officer called the paramedics to transport the victim to the hospital for observation.
