Robert Taylor v. State, A18A0473

Robert Taylor was convicted in 2007 of multiple sexual offenses against a child and sentenced to 40 years imprisonment plus 20 years probation; some counts were later vacated, leaving a 30-year prison term plus 20 years probation.
Taylor sought postjudgment relief multiple times: a 2010 motion to correct an illegal sentence (denied and appeal dismissed in 2011) and a 2017 motion to modify or reduce his sentence (denied and appealed).
In 2017 Taylor argued the sentence was illegal because (1) he was sentenced under a "mandatory regime" and (2) the court failed to conduct a presentence investigation.
The trial court denied the 2017 motion; Taylor appealed directly to the Court of Appeals of Georgia.
The Court of Appeals considered whether Taylor could pursue a direct appeal when his motion was filed outside the time limits of OCGA § 17-10-1(f) and whether his claims amounted to a colorable void-sentence claim.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the law of the case bars relitigation of Taylor’s sentence challenge	Taylor contended the trial court erred and sought modification now	State asserted prior appellate rulings and dismissal preclude relitigation	Court: Law of the case bars relitigation; appeal precluded
Whether the sentence is void and thus modifiable after § 17-10-1(f) period	Taylor argued sentencing was mandatory (Booker-type claim) rendering sentence illegal	State argued claims do not show a sentence the law does not allow; statutory time expired	Court: Claims fail to allege a void sentence; not subject to postperiod modification
Whether failure to conduct a presentence investigation makes the sentence void	Taylor argued lack of presentence investigation invalidated sentence	State argued procedural defects do not make a sentence void	Court: Procedural challenges do not allege a void sentence; claim inadequate for direct appeal
Whether federal sentencing doctrine (Booker) applies to invalidate state sentence	Taylor relied on Booker and related concepts	State noted Booker addresses federal sentencing, not applicable here	Court: Booker inapplicable; cannot support void-sentence claim

Ross v. State, 310 Ga. App. 326 (2011) (law-of-the-case doctrine applied to criminal appeals)
Frazier v. State, 302 Ga. App. 346 (2010) (statutory period for sentence modification and requirement of colorable void-sentence claim)
Jones v. State, 278 Ga. 669 (2004) (sentence void only if it imposes punishment the law does not allow; procedural challenges do not show voidness)
Taylor v. State, 292 Ga. App. 846 (2008) (prior appeal resolving issues in this defendant’s case)
Adams v. State, 299 Ga. App. 39 (2009) (limiting or overruling aspects of prior appellate precedent cited in earlier Taylor appeal)
United States v. Booker, 543 U.S. 220 (2005) (federal sentencing doctrine; held inapplicable to Taylor’s state-law claim)