Dougherty v. State

Summary

The Supreme Court of Georgia dismissed the appellant's appeal, vacated the trial court's out-of-time‑appeal order, held that such orders are void for lack of jurisdiction, and remanded for vacating the denial of the motion for a new trial and any related rulings. The decision rests on the law‑of‑the‑case doctrine and its prior holding in Cook v. State that trial courts lack authority to decide out‑of‑time appeals when direct review is pending.