Marvin Turner v. Hugh v. Wingfield, Judge

Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________ December 12, 2017

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A18A0836. MARVIN TURNER v. HUGH V. WINGFIELD, JUDGE.

Marvin Turner seeks appellate review of the trial court’s order dismissing his petition for writ of mandamus.1 We, however, lack jurisdiction. Because Turner is incarcerated, his appeal is controlled by the Prison Litigation Reform Act of 1996, OCGA § 42-12-1 et seq. Under OCGA § 42-12-8, an appeal of a civil action filed by a prisoner “shall be as provided in Code Section 5-6-35.” And under OCGA § 5-6-35 (b), the party wishing to appeal must file an application for discretionary review to the appropriate appellate court. Because a prisoner has no right of direct appeal in civil cases, which includes mandamus, we lack jurisdiction to consider Turner’s direct appeal. See Jones v. Townsend, 267 Ga. 489, 490 (480 SE2d 24) (1997). Accordingly, this appeal is hereby DISMISSED.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ 12/12/2017 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 Turner directed his notice of appeal to the Supreme Court, which transferred the matter to this Court.