Appellant was convicted by a jury of aggravated assault. He appeals his conviction and the denial of his motion for new trial.
Construed in a light most favorable to the verdict, the evidence adduced at trial shows the following: Early in the evening on May 24, 1989, Patricia Ann Stacey (“Stacey”) drove appellant to an open area of a housing project where appellant unknowingly bought some fake cocaine from an individual known as “Miami.” Stacey and appellant left the project but returned just a few minutes later, at which time appellant demanded that Miami give back appellant’s money, claiming that he had been sold “soap” instead of the drug he thought he was buying. After Miami refused to give back his money, appellant and Stacey again left the project but came back a second time; this time appellant was carrying a gun. The victim, in the meantime, had taken Miami’s place in the drug-selling area, and appellant and the victim began to argue. Appellant grabbed the victim by the collar, put the gun in the victim’s mouth and shot the victim in the neck.
1. Appellant contends that the evidence was insufficient to support the conviction because the sole evidence against him was the uncorroborated testimony of his accomplice Stacey. OCGA § 24-4-8 provides: “The testimony of a single witness is generally sufficient to establish a fact. However, in certain cases, including . . . felony cases where the only witness is an accomplice, the testimony of a single witness is not sufficient.” “[T]he rule that a felony conviction is not to be had on the uncorroborated testimony of an accomplice applies only when the accomplice is the
sole
witness upon whose testimony the state relies. [Cits.]”
McDaniel v. State,
2. Appellant enumerates as error the admission of the testimony of a State’s witness describing the victim’s medical condition, specifically her statements that the victim could not move his lower extremities and was hooked up to a life-support system. This testimony was offered into evidence after the court sustained an objection by appellant’s counsel to the State’s attempt to admit into evidence a photograph of the victim in the hospital. The transcript reveals that although counsel for the appellant objected to the line of questioning at the time he raised his objections to the admission of the photograph, counsel failed to object to the admission of the allegedly objectionable testimony at the time it was offered. “ ‘ “In order to raise on appeal contentions concerning admissibility of evidence, ‘the specific ground of objection must be made at the time the evidence is offered, and a failure to do so will be considered as a waiver. All evidence is admitted as a matter of course unless a valid ground of objection is interposed.’ (Cits.)” ’ [Cit.]”
McBurse v. State,
3. We find no merit in appellant’s enumeration of error that the trial court erred in failing to give appellant’s request to charge on reasonable doubt. “ ‘ “[I]t is no longer necessary to give the exact language of requests to charge when the same principles are fairly given to the jury in the general charge of the court. (Cit.)” (Cit.)’ [Cit.]”
Daniels v. State,
4. Finally, the appellant argues that the trial court erred in charging the jury as follows: “Aggravated assault is an intentional crime. In other words, it must involve either the specific intent or criminal negligence.” While that portion of the charge on the necessary state of mind for aggravated assault was incorrect (see
Bowers v. State,
Judgment affirmed.