Doreen Carter v. State

• Court: Court of Appeals of Georgia
• Decided: January 15, 2026
• Docket: A26A1080
• Status: Published

Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________ January 15, 2026

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A26A1080. DOREEN CARTER v. THE STATE.

In 2021, Doreen Carter entered a negotiated guilty plea to three counts of homicide by vehicle in the first degree, failure to obey a lowered railroad crossing gate, and failure to drive on the right side of the roadway. Carter was sentenced to a total of 25 years, with the first 15 years to be served in confinement. Since that time Carter has filed numerous motions to modify her sentence, which were all dismissed by the trial court. In October 2025, Carter filed yet another motion to reduce/modify her sentence, which the trial court dismissed on October 8, 2025. Carter filed a motion for reconsideration of that order. The trial court denied Carter’s motion for reconsideration on November 5, 2025. Carter then filed a notice of appeal on November 21, 2025, seeking to appeal the October 8 dismissal of her motion to reduce/modify her sentence. We, however, lack jurisdiction. Pretermitting whether the October 8 order is directly appealable, the notice of appeal was untimely. A notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days of entry of the judgment or trial court order sought to be appealed. OCGA § 5-6-38(a). The proper and timely filing of a notice of appeal is an absolute requirement to confer appellate jurisdiction on this Court. Perlman v. Perlman, 318 Ga. App. 731, 739(4) (734 SE2d 560) (2012). A motion for reconsideration does not extend the time to file an appellate challenge to an appealable order, and the denial of a motion for reconsideration is not appealable in its own right. See Bell v. Cohran, 244 Ga. App. 510, 510–11 (536 SE2d 187) (2000); Savage v. Newsome, 173 Ga. App. 271, 271 (326 SE2d 5) (1985). Consequently, the trial court’s November 5 order denying the motion for reconsideration is not appealable, and Carter’s notice of appeal was untimely as to the October 8 order, as it was filed 44 days later. See OCGA § 5-6-38(a); Bell, 244 Ga. App. at 510–11; Savage, 173 Ga. App. at 271. Accordingly, this appeal is hereby DISMISSED for lack of jurisdiction.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ 01/15/2026 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.