Gerald Pitts v. State

• Court: Court of Appeals of Georgia
• Decided: October 6, 2015
• Docket: A15A1322
• Status: Published

Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________ September 22, 2015

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A15A1322. GERALD PITTS v. THE STATE.

In 1994, Gerald Pitts pled guilty to rape and was sentenced to 20 years’ incarceration. Following his release from custody, Pitts filed a petition for release from sex offender registration requirements pursuant to OCGA § 42-1-19. The trial court denied his petition, and Pitts has appealed directly.1 Under OCGA § 5-6-35 (a) (5.2), however, an application for discretionary appeal is required in “[a]ppeals from decisions of superior courts granting or denying petitions for release pursuant to Code Section 42-1-19.” Pitts’s failure to follow the discretionary appeal procedure deprives us of jurisdiction over this direct appeal, which is hereby DISMISSED.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia 09/22/2015 Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ 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.

1 Thirty-four days after entry of the trial court’s order, Pitts filed a motion in this Court for an extension of time to file an application for discretionary appeal, but we denied the motion. See Case No. A15E0008, decided October 15, 2014.