Bell v. Hargrove
Decision Date | 03 November 2020 |
Docket Number | A20A1061 |
Citation | 849 S.E.2d 554,357 Ga.App. 802 |
Court | Georgia Court of Appeals |
Parties | BELL v. HARGROVE. |
John R. Monroe Monroe, Atlanta, for Appellant.
Bennett Davis Bryan, Omari J. Crawford, Atlanta, for Appellee.
Clinton Bell applied for a weapons carry license with DeKalb County Probate Judge Bedelia Hargrove. Based on information received during the ensuing investigation into Bell's background – specifically, that Bell had been arrested about 30 years prior on a charge of pointing a gun at another, Judge Hargrove denied Bell's application. Bell sought relief from the denial by filing a complaint for mandamus in superior court. On the parties’ cross-motions for summary judgment, the superior court ruled in Judge Hargrove's favor. Bell appeals. For reasons explained below, we affirm.
(Emphasis supplied.) The referenced subsection (d), which provides for the investigation of the applicant and the issuance/renewal of the license, includes that:
(Emphasis supplied.)
The referenced subsection (b), among other things, identifies persons to whom "[n]o weapons carry license shall be issued," including "[a]ny person who has been convicted of a felony ..."; "[a]ny person against whom proceedings are pending for any felony"; and "[a]ny person who is prohibited from possessing or shipping a firearm in interstate commerce pursuant to subsections (g) and (n) of 18 USC § 922." OCGA § 16-11-129 (b) (2) (B, C, E). Relevant here, 18 USC § 922 (g) states: "It shall be unlawful for any person ... (9) who has been convicted in any court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, to ship or transport in interstate or foreign commerce, or possess in or affecting commerce, any firearm or ammunition; or to receive any firearm or ammunition which has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce"3 (hereafter "Federal Provision").
See generally United States v. White , 593 F.3d 1199, 1205-1206 (II) (C) (2) (11th Cir. 2010) (, )cited in Hertz , 294 Ga. at 65 (2) (a), 751 S.E.2d 90.
In this case, on February 14, 2018, which was the day after Bell submitted his application, Judge Hargrove received a background report from the law enforcement agency. Among other things, the report showed that Bell had been arrested as an adult on May 27, 1986 by the Atlanta Police Department for the "Misdemeanor" offense of "Pointing or Aiming Gun or Pistol at Another" under OCGA § 16-11-102.4
Seeking reprieve in the superior court, Bell relied on OCGA § 16-11-129 (j), which provides:
When an eligible applicant fails to receive a license ... within the time period required by this Code section and the application ... has been properly filed, the applicant may bring an action in mandamus or other legal proceeding in order to obtain a license .... When an applicant is otherwise denied a license, ... and contends that he or she is qualified to be issued a license ..., the applicant may bring an action in mandamus or other legal proceeding in order to obtain such license. Additionally , the applicant may request a hearing before the judge of the probate court relative to the applicant's fitness to be issued such license.... If such applicant is the prevailing party, he or she shall be entitled to recover his or her costs in such action, including reasonable attorney's fees.
(Emphasis supplied.) In his superior court action, Bell alleged that he had properly completed and submitted his application to Judge Hargrove, and that he was eligible to obtain a weapons carry licence pursuant to OCGA § 16-11-129. Moreover, Bell contended, the "maximum amount of time allowed by law for [the probate judge] to issue a [weapons carry license] to an eligible applicant is 10 days after receiving the criminal background check." Bell complained that Judge Hargrove had taken more than that allotted time period to process his application, and he claimed that the judge's (eventual, but untimely) denial of his application was without any legal basis. Bell thus sought from the superior court: (i) a writ of...
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Bell v. Hargrove
...a probate judge has no such authority. We therefore reverse the Court of Appeals’ decision to the contrary. See Bell v. Hargrove , 357 Ga. App. 802, 849 S.E.2d 554 (2020).1. On February 13, 2018, Clinton Bell filed an application for a Georgia weapons carry license with the DeKalb County Pr......
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Bell v. Hargrove
...Hargrove , 313 Ga. 30, 867 S.E.2d 101 (2021), the Supreme Court of Georgia reversed the judgment of this Court in Bell v. Hargrove , 357 Ga. App. 802, 849 S.E.2d 554 (2020). Accordingly, we vacate our earlier opinion and adopt the opinion of the Supreme Court as our own; the trial court's j......