Waters v. State

Although concurring generally with the majority opinion, I cannot agree with the holdings in Divisions 2 and 3 that the trial court’s charge to the jury was not harmful error.

The record shows that Waters’ sole defense was that she was justified in driving because the car created a danger to herself and others where it was parked. Thus, after preliminary charges on presumption of innocence and burden of proof, the trial court charged: “I charge you that justification as a defense must appear from the evidence and not beyond a reasonable doubt, but by the preponderance of the evidence which is…