Chaine v. Commonwealth

Full title: George Terry Chaine, Appellant against Commonwealth of Virginia, Appellee

Court: Court of Appeals of Virginia

Date published: May 3, 1994

443 S.E.2d 924 (Va. Ct. App. 1994)

443 S.E.2d 924

Opinion

49582 No. 1712-91-1

May 3, 1994

In the Court of Appeals of Virginia on Tuesday the 3rd day of May, 1994.

Before Chief Judge Moon, Judges Baker, Barrow, Benton, Coleman, Koontz, Willis, Elder and Fitzpatrick

Fred C. Hardwick, II (Eusner Hardwick, P.C., on briefs), for appellant.

Marla Lynn Graff, Assistant Attorney General (Stephen D. Rosenthal, Attorney General; Virginia B. Theisen, Assistant Attorney General, on briefs), for appellee.

UPON REHEARING EN BANC OPINION

In Chaine v. Commonwealth, 17 Va. App. 179, 436 S.E.2d 187 (1993), a majority of a panel of this Court reversed a conviction for violation of Code Sec. 18.2-361. The Commonwealth's petition for rehearing en banc was granted and heard on February 18, 1994. For the reasons stated in the panel's majority opinion, we reverse the conviction and lift the stay of this Court's October 12, 1993, mandate.

Reversed.

Baker, J., with whom Moon, C.J., joins, dissenting.

I respectfully disagree with the majority's finding that "the trial judge's response is a clear acknowledgment that he understood the issue." Counsel for appellant candidly admitted that he did not raise the double jeopardy issue, yet the majority holds that the trial court ruled on that issue. Respectfully, I suggest that the majority has given new meaning to the word "specificity" contained in Rule 5A:18. I would affirm the trial court's judgment because appellant failed to meet the specificity requirement of Rule 5A:18.