Barton v. the State
331 Ga. App. 887
Ga. Ct. App.2015Background
- Paul Barton pled guilty on November 1, 2013 in Floyd County Superior Court to one count of sexual battery and one count of sexual battery of a child under 16, pursuant to a negotiated plea.
- The State recommended five years on each count to run concurrently; the written judgment and sentence were filed the same day.
- The plea transcript, a signed defendant "Transcript" form, and a judge's certification indicated the court accepted the plea and entered it on the minutes.
- November 1, 2013 was the last day of the September 2013 term; the next term began Monday, November 4, 2013, after which the trial court lost jurisdiction to withdraw the plea.
- Barton filed a pro se motion to withdraw his guilty plea on May 9, 2014, approximately six months after sentencing and outside the term in which he was sentenced.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the trial court had jurisdiction to consider Barton's post-sentencing motion to withdraw his guilty plea | Barton: Court never orally pronounced sentence at plea hearing, so under OCGA §17-7-93(b) he retained the absolute right to withdraw the plea before sentence was "pronounced" | State: Written judgment and judge's certification accepting the plea and filing sentence on Nov 1, 2013 terminated the pre-sentence withdrawal right; motion filed in a later term so court lacked jurisdiction | Court: No jurisdiction — written judgment and sentence filed Nov 1, 2013 ended right to withdraw; motion filed May 9, 2014 was untimely; affirming denial |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. Germany, 246 Ga. 455 (Supreme Court of Ga. 1980) ("pronounce" means orally announce; oral announcement ends pre-judgment withdrawal right)
- Kaiser v. State, 285 Ga. 63 (Ga. 2007) (written judgment filed the same day as hearing can end absolute right; motion to withdraw must be in same term as filing)
- Matthews v. State, 295 Ga. App. 752 (Ga. Ct. App. 2009) (motion to withdraw guilty plea must be made during same term in which defendant was sentenced)
- Spencer v. State, 309 Ga. App. 630 (Ga. Ct. App. 2011) (after term ends trial court loses jurisdiction over plea withdrawal)
- Hall v. State, 313 Ga. App. 670 (Ga. Ct. App. 2012) (habeas corpus is the available remedy when trial court lacks jurisdiction to withdraw plea)