Johnson v. State

The trial court harmlessly erred in requiring the defendant to introduce a certified copy of the victim's prior conviction, with the resulting loss of final closing argument, or forgo questioning her about her probationary status, given the overwhelming evidence against him,

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Linard Johnson appeals his convictions for aggravated assault and possession of cocaine. He contends the trial court erred when it 1 required him to introduce a certified copy of the victim’s prior conviction to impeach the witness; 2 instructed the jury on prior consistent statements; 3 sentenced him as a recidivist under OCGA § 17-10-7 c; and 4 held that trial counsel had not been ineffective. We find no reversible error and affirm. Viewed in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict, the evidence showed that as Johnson and his girlfriend argued over a woman’s telephone number that she found in his clothing, he began cursing her, pushed her down on a bed, strangled her with both hands, and threatened to kill her. The victim broke free, ran downstairs, and called 911, asking police to come quickly before hanging up. She then saw Johnson standing near her with an open knife in his hand. Johnson said that he should kill her, and that he should “gut” her because he was sick of her. The police then arrived, and the victim ran out of the apartment, pointing back at the front door and screaming that Johnson had a knife and was trying to kill her. Johnson was indeed at the door, looking “very surprised.” When the officer ordered Johnson to come out, Johnson slammed the door shut.

When the officer entered the apartment, he could not see anyone, but ordered whoever was inside to come out with their hands up. Johnson came out of a storage unit under the stairs with his hands up. After he was apprehended, a small ziplock baggie contained what was later determined to be cocaine was taken from Johnson’s right rear pocket. The officers also found and seized an open lock blade knife from a speaker near the apartment’s front door. The arresting officer testified that Johnson stated spontaneously in the course of his arrest that he was not crazy, but that if he were crazy, he would have come out of the house with the “knife still in his hand.”

Johnson v. State

The trial court harmlessly erred in requiring the defendant to introduce a certified copy of the victim's prior conviction, with the resulting loss of final closing argument, or forgo questioning her about her probationary status, given the overwhelming evidence against him,

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