Cardoza v. State

Benham, Judge.

Appellant was indicted for and convicted of burglary, simple battery, wearing a mask, and four counts of rape. On appeal, he contends that the rape charges should have been merged into one charge, and that the trial court abused its discretion by permitting the State to use appellant’s out-of-court statement during its cross-examination of him before determining whether the statement was given voluntarily.

1. In order to resolve the first issue raised by appellant, it is necessary to examine the evidence with particularity. The victim’s testimony at trial, corroborated by…