Legal Update
| January 16, 2002 |
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Reported by Dawn Diedrich Georgia Bureau of Investigation Deputy Director of Legal Services. |
| Law Prohibits Using Uniform Traffic Citation as Charging Instrument for
Non-traffic Misdemeanors. Shaver v. Peachtree City Georgia Court of
Appeals December 3, 2001. The Georgia Court of Appeals recently decided a
case involving the use of a uniform traffic citation to charge underage
possession of alcohol. In that case, an officer arrested the
defendant for underage possession of alcohol and issued him a uniform
traffic citation. Defendant moved to dismiss the charge and argued
that the uniform traffic citation was not a valid charging instrument for
a non-traffic offense. Although the trial court convicted Defendant,
the Georgia Court of Appeals agreed with his position and reversed the
conviction.
The Court stated that O.C.G.A. § 17-7-71 provided for use of traffic citations as charging instruments for "misdemeanor cases arising out of the laws of this state, relating to (A) the operation and licensing of motor vehicles and operators; (B) the width, height, and length of vehicles and loads; (C) motor common carriers and motor contract carriers; or (D) road taxes on motor carriers." The Court reasoned that the language of the statute is "plain and unequivocal, and nothing in [O.C.G.A. § 17-7-71] provides for trying a defendant for the misdemeanor of underage possession of alcohol upon a uniform traffic citation." Consequently, the Court found that the City lacked a valid charging instrument and the conviction must be reversed. This issue was brought to the attention of Legal Services by ASAC Keith Golden at East Central Georgia Drug Task Force. They recently had a case where a task force member arranged for the issuance of a uniform citation for a misdemeanor possession of marijuana charge. The defendant raised this issue during a motions hearing and the case was nolle prossed. The solicitor advised the task force member to obtain an arrest warrant and proceed with the case in that manner. This court of appeals decision may have impact on your department. Many law enforcement agencies in the state of Georgia use the state Uniform Traffic Citation (UTC), as a charging instrument to demand a person's appearance in court for crimes other than those related to vehicle code violations. (OCGA Titles 40, 46 and 32). In the Shavers case, the court ruled that the conviction of a person for underage alcohol possession was invalid because a UTC was used as the charging instrument. There are two possible ways to bring a person into the criminal court system other than immediately making a physical arrest. The first is to obtain a court warrant and the second is to use a charging document, which in essence is an invitation for a person to appear in court. In many cities, a charging document looks similar to a UTC, but it contains specific information that the court needs to properly prosecute an individual for a crime. I urge you to work in concert with your court system in deciding what method you will use to charge someone with a crime other than using a UTC. However, based upon the Shaver's case, you can no longer use a UTC to bring someone into criminal court. UPDATE - City of Peachtree City v. Shaver, S02G0702 (3/10/3). UTC May be used for non-traffic related offenses. Reversing the Court of Appeals, the Georgia Supreme Court held that the UTC may be used as a charging instrument in municipal court for the non-traffic related offense of under-aged possession. (OCGA 3-3-23). The Court discussed use of the UTC as a charging instrument for non-traffic related offenses and stated that even if the UTC is not the proper charging instrument, the criminal defendant must show he was harmed before the case will be dismissed. This decision reversed the previous decision by the Court of Appeals which held that a case must be dismissed where the non-traffic related offenses are charged on the UTC.
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