Zater v. State

I concur in Division 2 but not in Division 1. Defendant is entitled to reversal because of violation of his right to be tried in a single prosecution pursuant to OCGA § 16-1-7 (b).

The transcript of the motion hearing establishes that the statutory “prosecuting officer” in the Barnesville Municipal Court had actual knowledge when that case was commenced that defendant was charged also with driving under the influence. The statute says “prosecuting officer,” not “prosecuting attorney,” so the first government representative to proceed was the police officer.

A prosecutor in Georgia is not…