Opinion
A01A0681.
DECIDED: APRIL 11, 2001.
Statutory rape. Spalding Superior Court. Before Judge English.
Sullivan Sturdivant, Harold A. Sturdivant, for appellant.
William T. McBroom III, District Attorney, Daniel A. Hiatt, Assistant District Attorney, for appellee.
Convicted of statutory rape, Marvin James Bankston appeals on two grounds: the trial court erred in admitting his confession to having sexual intercourse with his fourteen-year-old daughter, and the evidence was therefore insufficient to sustain the conviction. The arresting officer testified that he gave Bankston Miranda warnings before the interrogation that led to the confession, that Bankston signed a waiver form acknowledging such, and that the officer made no promises or threats. Despite Bankston's testimony to the contrary, the court was authorized to believe the officer that the proper warnings were given before the interrogation. Thus, the trial court did not clearly err in finding the confession was voluntarily given after a knowing and intelligent waiver of his rights. Corroborated by the confession, the victim's testimony that Bankston had sexual intercourse with her when she was fourteen sufficed to sustain the conviction. We affirm.
Bankston was also found guilty of child molestation and incest, which counts the court merged into the statutory rape count at sentencing.
Wilson v. State, 211 Ga. App. 457, 458 (1) ( 439 S.E.2d 685) (1993).
See Wiley v. State, 245 Ga. App. 580, 581-582 (2) ( S.E.2d) (2000) (court may find that state met its burden of showing voluntariness of confession where officer testifies Miranda rights were given and no coercion or threats made); Trejo v. State, 245 Ga. App. 316, 317 (1) ( 537 S.E.2d 755) (2000) (burden is preponderance of the evidence).
Trejo, supra, 245 Ga. App. at 318 (2); accord Reece v. State, 241 Ga. App. 809, 810 ( 527 S.E.2d 642) (2000); cf. O.C.G.A. § 16-6-3 (a) ("no conviction shall be had for this offense on the unsupported testimony of the victim."); O.C.G.A. § 24-3-53 (confession must be corroborated to justify a conviction).
Judgment affirmed. ANDREWS, P.J., and ELDRIDGE, J., concur.