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188 Ga. App. 244

Nelson v. State

Court of Appeals of Georgia

Decided September 6, 1988

Court of Appeals of Georgia · decided 1988-09-06

Cited by 3 later decisions — most recently August 2001

3 state decisions

Relies on 170 Ga. App. 473 - Rhodes v. State

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1988-09-06

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Carley, Judge.

¶1Appellant was tried before a jury and convicted of selling marijuana in violation of OCGA § 16-13-30 (j). He appeals from the judgment of conviction and sentence entered by the trial court on the jury’s verdict.

¶2At trial, the State called as its witness an undercover police officer who testified that appellant had sold him a quantity of marijuana. He also testified that a confidential informant had identified appellant as “Pete White.” On cross-examination, appellant sought to question the officer concerning the reliability of the confidential informant. In his sole enumeration, appellant urges that his right to a thorough and sifting cross-examination of the officer as to this issue was erroneously restricted by the trial court.

¶3Even assuming the relevancy of an inquiry into the reliability of a confidential informant whose only apparent connection with the case was the incorrect identification of appellant as “Pete White,” the transcript shows that appellant was nevertheless allowed to pursue this topic during the cross-examination of the officer. Appellant was merely prevented from eliciting inadmissible hearsay and legal conclusions from the officer. The right to a thorough and sifting cross-examination is not abridged where the excluded testimony would be based upon speculation or hearsay. Rhodes v. State, 170 Ga. App. 473, 476 (3) (317 SE2d 285) (1984).

¶4Judgment affirmed.

Deen, P. J., and Sognier, J., concur.
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