Leverette v. State

Summary

The Georgia Supreme Court affirmed the denial of David Leverette’s motion for an out-of-time appeal following his guilty pleas to murder and related offenses. The court rejected claims concerning judicial recusal, plea-agreement sentencing, indictment venue, alleged abandonment by counsel, and transcript discrepancies. The court also denied Leverette’s untimely motion to amend his appeal.

Holdings

1. A judge's prior prosecution of the defendant on another charge that is not currently pending before the judge is not, standing alone, a ground for disqualification.
2. The sentences imposed complied with the plea agreement, and the trial court was not required to make a statement under USCR 33.10 because it did not reject the agreement.
3. An indictment need only identify the Georgia county in which the crime allegedly occurred; failure to state the street address is not a fatal defect.
4. Leverette was not entitled to an out-of-time appeal because the record-resolvable assertions of error lacked merit.
5. The additional grounds were properly denied because they were filed outside the applicable deadline for enumerations of error.
6. Minor discrepancies between the two transcript copies did not establish reversible error or warrant an out-of-time appeal.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Leverette was entitled to an out-of-time appeal based on the trial judge's refusal to recuse.
2. Whether the State breached the plea agreement or the trial court failed to comply with Georgia Uniform Superior Court Rules 33.5 and 33.10.
3. Whether the indictment was fatally defective because it did not state the street address where the crimes occurred.
4. Whether trial counsel's alleged abandonment after the guilty pleas justified an out-of-time appeal.
5. Whether Leverette's motion to amend and additional enumerations of error were timely.
6. Whether discrepancies between two copies of the guilty-plea transcript warranted relief.

Disposition

affirmed