Steele v. State, 337 Ga. App. 562

Defendant Calvin Sydney Steele III, age 24, was tried and convicted of statutory rape and child molestation based on sexual intercourse with a 14‑year‑old after online contact; acquitted on a separate computer pornography charge.
At a Jackson‑Denno hearing, Detective Tim Deal testified Steele waived Miranda, admitted marijuana use about nine hours earlier, and appeared to understand rights; Steele signed a written waiver and gave a custodial statement.
The next day Steele gave written consent to a DNA sample after being advised of the right to refuse; the consent form acknowledged no threats or promises were made.
The State introduced evidence of Steele’s 2007 misdemeanor statutory rape conviction (involving a different 14‑year‑old in the same trailer park) for intent, lack of mistake, and lustful disposition; the jury received limiting instructions.
Steele moved for a new trial arguing the trial court erred in admitting: (1) his custodial statement given after drug use, (2) DNA evidence obtained with consent while in custody, and (3) his prior 2007 statutory‑rape conviction; the trial court denied relief and this appeal followed.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (State)	Defendant's Argument (Steele)	Held
Admissibility of custodial statement after claimed drug use	Statement was voluntary; officer testified Steele understood rights and was not impaired	Steele argued prior drug use rendered waiver/in‑custody statement involuntary	Court upheld admission — trial court’s voluntariness finding not clearly erroneous
Voluntariness of consent to DNA sample	Consent was voluntary; Steele was advised he could refuse and signed a written consent form without threats or promises	Consent was mere acquiescence to authority after ~24 hours in custody and officers identified as police	Court upheld denial of suppression — totality showed voluntary consent
Admission of prior 2007 statutory‑rape conviction	Prior sexual‑assault conviction is admissible under OCGA §24‑4‑413 for relevance to intent, knowledge, plan, lack of mistake, and propensity	Admission was irrelevant and unfairly prejudicial despite similarity	Court affirmed admission — statute creates strong presumption of admissibility given close factual similarity

Jackson v. Denno, 378 U.S. 368 (custodial statement voluntariness hearing principle)
Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (Miranda warnings and waiver framework)
Norton v. State, 293 Ga. 332 (totality of circumstances for Jackson‑Denno hearings)
Currier v. State, 294 Ga. 392 (State’s burden to prove voluntariness by preponderance)
Wright v. State, 285 Ga. 428 (post‑finding admission of statement permitted)
Colton v. State, 296 Ga. 172 (appellate deference to trial court credibility findings)
Watkins v. State, 289 Ga. 359 (admission of statements where officer observed no impairment)
Philmore v. State, 263 Ga. 67 (prior drug use did not automatically render waiver involuntary)
Borden v. State, 247 Ga. 477 (similar holding on intoxication and voluntariness)
State v. Frost, 297 Ga. 296 (OCGA §24‑4‑413 as a rule of inclusion for sexual‑offense other‑acts evidence)
State v. Reid, 337 Ga. App. 77 (written consent and absence of threats support voluntariness)
Park v. State, 308 Ga. App. 648 (consent voluntary despite multiple officers and restraints)