Opinion
A01A0692.
DECIDED: APRIL 12, 2001.
Aggravated child molestation. Rockdale Superior Court. Before Judge Nation.
Moulton Massey, John W. Moulton, Laura A. Rice, for Appellant.
Richard R. Read, District Attorney, Dabney Y. Kentner, Assistant District Attorney, for Appellee.
Johnny Chuck Rolader pled guilty to aggravated child molestation. The trial court sentenced Rolader to 15 years, requiring him to serve 10 years and probating the balance. Rolader appeals, asserting that the trial court erred in ruling that it lacked discretion to sentence him under O.C.G.A. § 17-10-1 (b), which would have made him eligible for parole prior to the completion of his sentenced incarceration. We disagree and therefore affirm.
O.C.G.A. § 17-10-1 (b) permits the sentencing judge to determine whether the person being sentenced can be considered for parole prior to completion of the prison sentence. However, O.C.G.A. § 17-10-6.1, which defines aggravated child molestation as a "serious violent felony," prohibits the reduction of the mandatory minimum prison sentence for serious violent felonies by any form of pardon or parole. Because Rolader was convicted of a serious violent felony, the trial court had no discretion to sentence him under O.C.G.A. § 17-10-1 (b)
See Taylor v. State, 241 Ga. App. 439 ( 526 S.E.2d 910) (1999).
Rolader also asserts that the trial court erred in applying O.C.G.A. § 17-10-6.1 because that section conflicts with O.C.G.A. § 17-10-1 (b). In Taylor v. State, we concluded that these two Code sections are not conflicting, and for the reasons expressed in that case, we reject Rolader's argument here.
Id.
We also disagree with Rolader that application of O.C.G.A. § 17-10-6.1 renders O.C.G.A. § 17-10-1 (b) meaningless. Rolader's argument is premised on his contention that, aside from serious violent felonies, there are no other crimes to which O.C.G.A. § 17-10-1 (b) can be applied. Because there are a host of other crimes to which O.C.G.A. § 17-10-1 (b) could be applied, this argument fails as well. Judgment affirmed. Johnson, P.J., and Ellington, J., concur.
See, e.g., O.C.G.A. § 16-5-21 (aggravated assault); O.C.G.A. § 16-7-1 (burglary); and O.C.G.A. § 16-13-30 (offenses related to controlled substances).