Paul Eugene Chergi was convicted of armed robbery, possession of cocaine, felony obstruction of an officer, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He enumerates four errors on appeal.
This case arose when Chergi robbed the assistant manager of a local Shoney’s Restaurant at gunpoint in the presence of several witnesses.
Piefer v. State,
Later that night, Chergi and his girl friend drove to Roswell Road and purchased some cocaine, then went to the Mariott Marquis where they smoked cocaine all night. They returned to the girl friend’s apartment and then left to purchase more cocaine.
On their way back, one of the arresting officers spotted the car and radioed for assistance. After the officer pulled Chergi from the car and prepared to frisk him, Chergi ran and the officer called the K-9 unit. Eventually, Chergi was found, subdued, and arrested. Officers found a crack pipe containing cocaine in the Beretta. Held:
1. Chergi argues that the trial court’s failure to sever the obstruction and possession charges from the armed robbery and weapons charges requires reversal. We disagree.
Severance is mandated when offenses are joined solely because of their similarity, but not when offenses are joined because they are based on a series of acts connected together,
Loyless v. State,
Here, a reasonable factfinder could infer a connection between the armed robbery, the purchase of cocaine, and Chergi’s flight to avoid prosecution. Id. The association between the high cost of drugs and the need for funds to purchase them is well recognized. Because these offenses clearly were not joined solely for their similarity, we must conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying the motion for severance. Id.;
Loyless,
2. Chergi argues that the trial court erred by permitting the State to introduce identification testimony which was purportedly tainted. He argues that the in-court identification procedure was flawed because one of the witnesses, who could not identify him in the photo lineup, was asked to review those photos and then make an in-court identification, and the defense investigator was ordered to move from counsel table, purportedly due to his resemblance to Chergi.
While Chergi broadly argues that this procedure tainted all the witnesses who offered identification testimony, the witnesses at issue were unable to identify Chergi from the photo lineup and admitted so before the jury. Only two of the witnesses subsequently identified Chergi at trial, and one of them had not viewed the photographic lineup. These are the only witnesses who arguably could have harmed Chergi. See
Williams v. State,
Pretermitting whether the allegedly tainted identification testimony was cumulative, the evidence at issue was admissible. See
Thompson v. State,
3. The court’s failure to instruct the jury that the .25 caliber semiautomatic pistol introduced into evidence was only a replica of
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the firearm at issue does not require reversal. Replicas of weapons used in the commission of a crime are generally admissible when it is undisputed that a similar weapon was used.
Stiles v. State,
4. Chergi contends that the evidence of cocaine possession, consisting solely of uncorroborated testimony from his girl friend, was insufficient to support his conviction. We disagree.
Accomplice testimony must be corroborated to support a conviction. OCGA § 24-4-8. But only slight evidence of participation in the offense from an extraneous source will provide the necessary corroboration, which may consist entirely of circumstantial evidence.
Moody v. State,
Here, Chergi’s girl friend testified that he purchased cocaine after stopping at the Shoney’s and smoked it later that night at the Marriott Marquis using a crack pipe which was subsequently recovered in the Beretta. Another crack pipe was found in a pair of Chergi’s pants sitting in a basket at his girl friend’s apartment. The arresting officer testified about Chergi’s flight. Id. at 502. Further, a chemical test revealed a cocaine metabolite in Chergi’s blood. This evidence, viewed in the light most favorable to the verdict, was sufficient to establish all the elements of cocaine possession.
Jackson v. Virginia,
Judgment affirmed.
Notes
Closing arguments were not transcribed.