Wednesday, March 6, 2002
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Wednesday, March 6, 2002 |
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PTC peeping tom conviction upheld by court The Georgia Court of Appeals has upheld a man's conviction for attempting to peer into a woman's apartment complex in Peachtree City. Bennie Rae Yonce's main contention in the appeal was that no one testified he was able to see through the apartment windows. But the court ruled that according to case law regarding the "peeping tom" statute, "the state is not required to show that a person is actually spied upon." Yonce also claimed that Superior Court Judge Ben J. Miller should have granted a mistrial when a police officer improperly testified that Yonce declined to make anystatements when he was taken into custody. But the appeals court ruled that Miller instructed the jury to disregard the statement. It was also noted that the officer's statement came under cross examination by the defense counsel, thereby making the complaint moot. According to the officer's testimony, Yonce was observed about 2 a.m. in the apartment complex as he peered into several of the victim's windows. Yonce later claimed he was at the apartment complex to aid a troubled young woman and he was not engaging in any peeping tom activities. John Munford
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