Summary
The Georgia Court of Appeals denied Rickey Lett’s pro se emergency motion seeking an extension of time to file a notice of appeal and related relief concerning his criminal judgment. The court held that the motion was filed after the 30-day appeal period had expired and therefore could not be granted under Georgia law, and that it also failed to satisfy the standard for emergency relief.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether the Court of Appeals could extend the time for filing a notice of appeal when the request was made after expiration of the statutory 30-day filing period.
- Whether Lett was entitled to emergency relief in the form of vacatur of the judgment or an out-of-time appeal.
Holdings
- The Court of Appeals lacked authority to grant Lett's requested extension because he filed the motion after expiration of the 30-day period for filing a notice of appeal and had not sought an extension before that period expired.
- Lett was not entitled to emergency relief because his motion did not meet the standard contemplated by Court of Appeals Rule 40(b).
Key quotations
“Because Lett’s motion for an extension of time was filed after expiration of the 30-day period for filing a notice of appeal of the trial court’s February 19, 2021 order, we are without authority to grant the requested extension.”
Factual background
Lett had been convicted of several violent felonies, and his convictions had previously been affirmed on appeal. After the trial court denied his motion to vacate the judgment on February 19, 2021, he sought an extension of time to appeal that order. He filed the extension motion on April 20, 2021, after the 30-day appeal period had expired, and also argued that his sentence was void.
Procedural history
Lett was convicted of armed robbery, attempted armed robbery, two counts of aggravated assault, and false imprisonment, and the Court of Appeals previously affirmed his convictions. He later filed a motion to vacate judgment, which the trial court denied on February 19, 2021. He filed the present emergency motion on April 20, 2021, after the 30-day period for appealing the trial court's order had expired. The Court of Appeals denied the motion.