State v. Burns

306 Ga. 117

FINAL COPY S18G1354. THE STATE v. BURNS. BENHAM, Justice. In Smith v. State, 259 Ga. 135(1) ( 377 SE2d 158) (1989), this Court held that, once certain procedural requirements are satisfied, a defendant in a sexual offense prosecution may adduce evidence at trial that the complaining witness has made prior false accusations of sexual misconduct and, further, that such evidence is admissible both to attack the credibility of the victim and as substantive evidence tending to prove that the conduct underlying the charges did not occur. In its decision below, the Court of Appeals…