Christie Montgomery v. State

• Court: Court of Appeals of Georgia
• Decided: July 8, 2025
• Docket: A25A2103
• Status: Published

Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________ July 08, 2025

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A25A2103. CHRISTIE MONTGOMERY v. THE STATE.

Upon being convicted of malice murder, aggravated assault, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, Christie Montgomery was sentenced to a total of life in prison plus five years. Montgomery filed a motion for new trial, which the trial court denied. Montgomery then filed the instant appeal. We lack jurisdiction. The Supreme Court of Georgia has appellate jurisdiction over “[a]ll cases in which a sentence of death was imposed or could be imposed.” Ga. Const. of 1983, Art. VI, Sec. VI, Par. III (8). Because a penalty of death may be imposed for the crime of murder, jurisdiction over this appeal lies in the Supreme Court. See OCGA § 16-5-1 (a), (e) (1); see also Hart v. State, __ Ga. __, __ (1) (Case No. S25A0136, June 24, 2025) (even in murder cases in which the death penalty was not sought, the Supreme Court has opted to exercise its jurisdiction to review all such cases). Accordingly, this appeal is hereby TRANSFERRED to the Supreme Court for disposition. See State v. Thornton, 253 Ga. 524, 524 (1) (322 SE2d 711) (1984), overruled in part on other grounds as recognized in Elliott v. State, 305 Ga. 179, 205 (III) (C) (i) (824 SE2d 265) (2019).

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ 07/08/2025 I certify that the above is a true extract from the minutes of the Court of Appeals of Georgia. Witness my signature and the seal of said court hereto affixed the day and year last above written.

, Clerk.