Lockhart v. State

• Decision Date: 29 June 2022
• Docket Number: A22A1488
• Parties: SHAWN DAVERT LOCKHART, JR. v. THE STATE.
• Court: United States Court of Appeals (Georgia)

SHAWN DAVERT LOCKHART, JR. v. THE STATE.

No. A22A1488

Court of Appeals of Georgia

June 29, 2022

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

In 2009, Shawn Lockhart, Jr., pled guilty to armed robbery, kidnapping, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, and the trial court imposed a 25-year total sentence. Lockhart filed a motion for leave to file an out-of-time appeal in January 2021, and the trial court dismissed the motion. Lockhart then filed this appeal.

As the Supreme Court recently determined, a trial court lacks authority to grant an out-of-time appeal. Cook v. State, 313 Ga. 471, 506 (5) (870 S.E.2d 758) (2022). Lockhart, therefore, "had no right to file a motion for an out-of-time appeal in the trial court; his remedy, if any, lies in habeas corpus." Rutledge v. State, 313 Ga. 460, 461 (870 S.E.2d 720) (2022). Thus, the trial court correctly determined that it did not have jurisdiction to consider Lockhart's motion for out-of-time appeal, and the court's order dismissing the motion does not present a cognizable basis for an appeal. See Henderson v. State, 303 Ga. 241, 244 (2) (811 S.E.2d 388) (2018). Accordingly, this appeal is hereby DISMISSED.

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