State v. Dykeman

THIS OPINION HAS NO PRECEDENTIAL VALUE. IT SHOULD NOT BE CITED OR RELIED ON AS PRECEDENT IN ANY PROCEEDING EXCEPT AS PROVIDED BY RULE 268(d)(2), SCACR. THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA In The Court of Appeals The State, Respondent, v. John Dykeman, Appellant. Appeal From Beaufort County John M. Milling, Circuit Court Judge Unpublished Opinion No. 2010-UP-436 Submitted October 1, 2010 – Filed October 12, 2010 AFFIRMED Senior Appellate Defender Joseph L. Savitz, III, of Columbia, for Appellant. Attorney General Henry Dargan McMaster, Chief Deputy Attorney General John W. McIntosh, Assistant Deputy Attorney General Donald J. Zelenka, Assistant Attorney General Melody J. Brown, all of Columbia; and Solicitor I. McDuffie Stone, III, of Bluffton, for Respondent. PER CURIAM: John Dykeman appeals his convictions for murder, kidnapping, and armed robbery. Dykeman argues the trial court erred in instructing the jury that he would receive the procedural advantage of having the final closing argument in the event he declined to offer evidence. We affirm[1] pursuant to Rule 220(b)(1), SCACR, and the following authority: State v. Steadman, 257 S.C. 528, 536-37, 186 S.E.2d 712, 714 (1972) (holding an appellant's argument that the trial court erred in interfering, participating, and commenting during the trial proceedings was not preserved for appellate review because the appellant failed to interpose a timely objection at trial). AFFIRMED. FEW, C.J., HUFF and GEATHERS, JJ., concur. [1] We decide this case without oral argument pursuant to Rule 215, SCACR.