553 S.E.2d 854 | Ga. Ct. App. | 2001
Randall W. Sanford pled guilty to driving under the influence, driving with a suspended license, and driving without proof of insurance. The trial court sentenced Sanford to 36 months and directed
Georgia law authorizes the custodian of a county inmate to “award earned time allowances . . . based on institutional behavior” and requires that “[a]n inmate sentenced to confinement as a county inmate shall be released at the expiration of his or her sentence less the time deducted for earned time allowances.”
When the trial court in this case denied Sanford’s motion for sentence modification, it recognized that it had no authority to “ ‘impose its will over the Executive Department’ ” concerning an earned time allowance. The court insisted, however, that the “no early release” provision in the probation revocation order “was intended to be advisory to the sheriff,” and it therefore denied Sanford’s motion. While we will not dispute the trial court’s intent, the plain language of its revocation order emphatically requires Sanford to serve his time with “NO EARLY RELEASE.” Notwithstanding the trial court’s intent, the order speaks for itself, and Sanford’s “post-sentence custodian should not be asked to comply with an order of the trial court which is inconsistent with the law.”
Judgment of probation revocation reversed in part and remanded with direction.
OCGA § 42-4-7 (b) (1), (3) (Supp. 2001).
Davis v. State, 181 Ga. App. 498 (1) (353 SE2d 7) (1987).
Grimes v. Stewart, 222 Ga. 713 (152 SE2d 369) (1966). See also Hutchins v. State, 243 Ga. App. 261 (2) (533 SE2d 107) (2000); Johns v. State, 160 Ga. App. 535, 536-537 (287 SE2d 617) (1981).
Johnson v. State, 248 Ga. App. 454, 456 (3) (546 SE2d 562) (2001).