Opinion
A22A0841
04-07-2022
ANTHONY P. SHEDD v. THE STATE.
The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:
In 2017, Anthony P. Shedd pled guilty to three counts of child molestation. In 2021, Shedd filed a motion for out-of-time appeal, which the trial court denied. Shedd filed a timely application for discretionary appeal, which we granted under OCGA § 5-6-35 (j). See A22D0185 (Dec. 27, 2021). Shedd then filed this direct appeal.
After we granted Shedd's discretionary application, the Supreme Court issued an opinion holding that a trial court lacks authority to grant an out-of-time appeal. See Cook v. State, ____ Ga. ____ (Case No. S21A1270, decided March 15, 2022); see also Rutledge v. State, ____ Ga. ____ (Case No. S21A1036, decided March 15, 2022). The Supreme Court expressly held that its ruling applied to all cases, including those currently on appeal that are not otherwise final. See Cook, ____ Ga. ____, ____ (5) (slip op. at 82). The Supreme Court directed that we vacate the trial court's ruling in such cases and remand with direction to dismiss the motion. In Rutledge, the Supreme Court clarified that, even when a motion for out-of-time appeal has been denied, the proper procedure is to vacate the denial order and remand the case in order for the trial court to enter a dismissal order. See Rutledge, Ga., (slip op. at 2).
In keeping with the Supreme Court's directives, the trial court's order denying Shedd's motion for out-of-time appeal is hereby VACATED and the case is REMANDED to the trial court, which is DIRECTED to enter an order dismissing Shedd's motion for out-of-time appeal.