Pierce v. State, 289 Ga. 893

Pierce indicted 1999 for two murders and aggravated assault, with State notice to seek death penalty.
In 2003, Pierce pled guilty to two counts of malice murder, one aggravated assault, and one felon-in-possession, receiving life without parole for murders and other terms.
Pierce, acting pro se, filed multiple post-conviction motions between 2007–2010, including for out-of-time appeal and to vacate void sentences.
January 2010 motion to set aside Cambron order and December 2009 inquiries created dispute over notice and timing.
Trial court denied most motions in 2011; Pierce appeals pro se from the denial of the set-aside/appointment orders.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Counsel for out-of-time appeal and void-sentence motions	Pierce seeks appointment of counsel for those motions	Indigent not entitled to counsel for out-of-time appeal or Cambron motion	No right to counsel for out-of-time appeal or Cambron motion
Cambron notice and re-entry findings	Trial court failed to make Cambron findings and notice	Cambron procedure not properly applied without findings	Remanded to make Cambron findings; if no notice, grant motion and re-enter order
Validity of life-without-parole sentence under pre-2009 statute	Sentence void for lack of express aggravating finding	Remand futile post-repeal of OCGA 17-10-32.1	Sentence void; remand for possible resentencing consistent with pre-2009 law

Hughes v. State, 269 Ga. 819 (1998) (requires explicit aggravating finding for LWP when death-penalty notice given)
Rooney v. State, 287 Ga. 1 (2010) (denial of motion to vacate void sentence directly appealable)
Orr v. State, 276 Ga. 91 (2003) (indigency does not entitle counsel for post-conviction motions)
Cambron v. Canal Ins. Co., 246 Ga. 147 (1980) (procedure when notice of appealable order is not given)
Sea Tow/Sea Spill of Savannah v. Phillips, 247 Ga. App. 613 (2001) (relates to Cambron timing and notice issues)