Errol Marcellus Windham v. State, A17A0802

Defendant Errol Marcellus Windham (previously spelled Windhom) was convicted of armed robbery; conviction was reversed in 2012 for improper hearsay and he was retried and reconvicted.
After the 2014 affirmance of the retrial conviction and a 20-year sentence, Windham filed (Sept. 2016) a motion to correct a void sentence.
Windham argued the indictment was not returned in open court, failed to properly allege venue, was constructively amended, and that the arrest warrant lacked probable cause, so the trial court lacked personal jurisdiction.
The trial court denied the motion; Windham appealed from that denial to the Court of Appeals of Georgia.
The Court of Appeals held it lacked jurisdiction because Windham’s claims attacked the conviction (not the sentence) and his sentence was within the statutory range, so it was not void.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the sentence is void	Windham: defects in indictment and warrant render sentence void and subject to correction	State: sentence falls within statutory range and challenges attack conviction, not sentence	Held: Sentence not void; court lacks jurisdiction to hear appeal
Whether indictment was invalid for not being returned in open court	Windham: procedural defect in indictment invalidates conviction/sentence	State: procedural defects challenge conviction, not the legality of the sentence	Held: Claim attacks conviction; not a void-sentence claim
Whether venue and constructive amendment defects render sentence void	Windham: venue/allegation issues void sentence	State: these are conviction issues, not sentence defects	Held: These do not state a valid void-sentence claim
Whether arrest warrant lacking probable cause deprived court of personal jurisdiction	Windham: arrest warrant without probable cause means court lacked jurisdiction, so sentence void	State: jurisdictional/probable-cause claim attacks conviction and is not proper in a void-sentence motion	Held: Claim challenges conviction; cannot be raised as void-sentence motion; appeal dismissed

Windhom v. State, 315 Ga. App. 855 (2012) (prior reversal for improper hearsay)
Windhom v. State, 326 Ga. App. 212 (2014) (affirmance of retrial conviction and sentence)
Jones v. State, 278 Ga. 669 (2004) (sentence modification jurisdiction limited unless sentence is void)
Harper v. State, 286 Ga. 216 (2009) (appeal from denial of void-sentence motion requires colorable void claim; petition to modify conviction not appropriate)
Burg v. State, 297 Ga. App. 118 (2009) (same principle on void-sentence appeals)
von Thomas v. State, 293 Ga. 569 (2013) (void-sentence motions generally limited to sentences unauthorized by law)
Williams v. State, 287 Ga. 192 (2010) (claims attacking conviction are not void-sentence claims)
Roberts v. State, 286 Ga. 532 (2010) (appeals from motions to vacate or modify conviction must be dismissed)