Jeffery L. Nutt v. State, A18A0878

In Sept. 2012 Jeffery L. Nutt pleaded guilty to aggravated assault with intent to rape, three counts of battery, and simple battery; total sentence 10 years, with 2 years to serve and the rest on probation.
Nutt’s probation was partially revoked by consent in Aug. 2016, revoking three years and terminating the remainder.
In May 2017 Nutt filed a “motion to vacate void part of sentence,” arguing he was never properly notified at plea or judgment that he would be required to register as a sex offender under OCGA § 42-1-12 based on the aggravated assault with intent to rape conviction.
The trial court denied relief; Nutt appealed directly to the Court of Appeals of Georgia.
The Court of Appeals found it lacked jurisdiction to review the claim because Nutt did not raise a colorable claim that his sentence was void and his motion to withdraw the guilty plea (if construed as such) was untimely.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the sex-offender registration requirement renders the sentence void	Nutt: Failure to notify at plea/judgment that registration would be required makes part of the sentence void	State: Registration requirement is statutory consequence of the conviction and does not make the sentence exceed statutory punishment	Court: No — registration requirement is authorized by statute; sentence not void
Whether the trial court had authority to modify the sentence after statutory period	Nutt: Seeks relief after imposition; implies modification is appropriate	State: Modifications limited to statutory window; after that only void sentences may be altered	Court: Statutory period expired; absent a void sentence, court lacked power to modify
Whether the motion is properly treated as a motion to withdraw guilty plea and is timely	Nutt: Implicitly argues plea was defective due to lack of notice	State: A motion to withdraw guilty plea must be filed in same term and is untimely here	Court: If construed as motion to withdraw plea, it is untimely and court lacked jurisdiction to grant it

Frazier v. State, 302 Ga. App. 346 (2010) (describes statutory window for sentence modification and when only void sentences may be altered)
Jones v. State, 278 Ga. 669 (2004) (defines a void sentence as punishment the law does not allow and limits post-period modification)
Ellison v. State, 283 Ga. 461 (2008) (motion to withdraw a guilty plea must be filed in the same term of court; untimely motions cannot be granted)